Orange Chicken – a popular Chinese-American dish made with cubed, battered, fried chicken breast coated in a sweet and spicy orange-flavored sticky sauce. A must-have family dish that’s great for weekly rotation.
I can’t imagine life without Chinese takeout. Ever since I came here to the U.S., I came to love Asian recipes day by day that I also incorporate it in my weekly menu other than our well-loved African and Southern dishes.
Food is a great way to connect to different cultures from around the world. And since I couldn’t book a ticket to enjoy these foods locally, guess I could settle for enjoying these easy and tasty dishes right in my own kitchen.
What is Orange Chicken?
Do you know that Orange Chicken is rarely found in restaurants in China? Shocking, right? In fact, this orange-flavored saucy chicken recipe is actually a popular dish served at Chinese restaurants in North America. This recipe was said to have been first developed at a Panda Express in Hawaii in 1987 by Chef Andy Kao. Orange Chicken has since then become the promotional dish for the said restaurant by dedicating a food truck to distribute samples of this dish. And it sure did work; judging by how popular Panda Express is now here in North America.
Orange Chicken Ingredients
Instead of going for takeout or driving in traffic just to get your craving satisfied, you can make this simple yet delicious Orange Chicken right at home using simple ingredients.
Chicken. Although I have this thing for chicken thighs, for this recipe I decided to go with boneless skinless chicken breast. Chicken breast makes a great leaner meat for this recipe as they can be cut easily into cubes.
Tip: You may also replace it with peeled and deveined shrimps, beef (flank steak or short ribs) or tofu for a meatless option.
Chicken Coating. The list might be too long for you and couple more dishes to clean up after, but I can guarantee that this comes easily. Our chicken coating ingredients are pantry staples like corn starch, flour, eggs, and salt and pepper. We coat the chicken with the corn starch and flour mixture for that nice crispy texture and dredge it in beaten eggs to moisten it and allow the flour coating to cling to well.
Orange Chicken Sauce. Unlike other versions, our sauce here doesn’t call for orange marmalade. I’d like to keep it simple using pantry staple ingredients (except for soy sauce, perhaps) with freshly squeezed orange juice, white vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, lemon juice and zest. It’s much more flavorful this way using fresh ingredients. Throw in some freshly grated ginger, sriracha and pepper flakes and you have one lip-smacking delicious sauce.
Is Orange Chicken the same as Sweet and Sour Chicken?
Sweet and sour version is a combination of sweet and tangy flavors from sugar, white vinegar, soy sauce and ketchup – which explains the reddish hue. The difference between the two is the presence of orange….I mean a lot of orange flair for orange chicken.
General Tso Chicken vs. Orange Chicken
Orange chicken was said to be General Tso’s with a bunch of orange. First of all, both dishes aren’t found in China. Second, they’re both fried chicken chunks covered in a sticky glaze-like sauce and often serve on top of rice with sauteed broccoli on the side. And lastly, they’re both undoubtedly delicious.
But unlike General Tso Chicken, Orange Chicken has a lighter-colored sweet and savory glaze with an orange flair. Furthermore, General Tso Chicken is a bit spicier and sweeter than orange chicken and the sauce is more like a brown sauce rather than the orange-y one. One last thing that I want to point out too is that orange chicken also uses ginger root to elevate the orange flavor.
Orange Chicken Sauce Recipe
Okay, don’t let the long list scare you, but this orange chicken sauce is totally worth it. PLUS, you’ll only be using easy-to-find ingredients; you might have all of this sitting in your pantry right now.
- Combine the ingredients. In a large saucepan, combine the following: combine chicken broth, orange juice, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, sriracha , ginger, garlic, lemon juice, orange zest and red pepper flakes
Tip: Want to crank up the heat? Try adding more sriracha sauce or basically adjust it to your preference especially when serving to kids.
Don’t like red pepper flakes? You may omit it or adjust to suit your preference.
No Sriracha sauce? Use other hot sauce, but remember, Sriracha is a unique hot sauce so there could be a slight difference with the taste. Check out other sriracha substitutes HERE.
No Soy Sauce? You can substitute it for coconut aminos or tamari. And I always go for reduced sodium.
- Heat up the mixture. Place the saucepan over medium heat, bring to a boil and simmer for a few minutes – about 3-4 minutes. Then whisk in water and cornstarch mixture to thicken the sauce. Continue cooking for about 5 minutes and remove from heat then set aside.
No Cornstarch? You may use ground/milled flaxseed for a nice nutty flavor. Or go with arrowroot, potato starch, tapioca starch or rice flour. Cornstarch is made from cornmeal.
Easy Asian Recipes
Love More Sticky Delicious Chicken Recipes?
How To Make Orange Chicken
In a large saucepan, combine chicken broth, orange juice, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, sriracha , ginger, garlic, lemon juice, orange zest and red pepper flakes. Place pan over medium high heat, bring sauce to a boil and simmer for a few minutes – about 3-4 minutes.
In a small bowl, whisk together water and cornstarch to form a paste. Slowly stir cornstarch mixture into orange sauce. Continue cooking until sauce begins to thicken, about 5 minutes. Remove sauce pan from heat and set aside. Season chicken cubes with salt and pepper to taste.
In a medium-sized shallow dish, whisk together cornstarch and flour, set aside. In a small shallow dish, whisk eggs. Dip chicken into egg mixture and then dredge in the cornstarch mixture. Place on a plate and set aside.
Meanwhile, heat 2-3 inches of oil in a heavy bottom pot or wok over medium high heat. Working in small batches, fry chicken pieces stirring often until cooked through and golden brown – about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from oil and drain on a paper towel lined plate. Repeat the process for the remaining chicken cubes.
Orange Chicken - a popular Chinese-American dish made with cubed, battered, fried chicken breast coated in a sweet and spicy orange-flavored sticky sauce. A must-have family dish in weekly rotation.
- ½ cup (125 ml) chicken broth
- ½ cup (125 ml) freshly squeezed orange juice
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (59 ml) white vinegar
- ¼ cup (60 ml) soy sauce
- 1 ½ teaspoon (7.5 g) sriracha
- 1 teaspoon (2 g) freshly grated ginger
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon (6 g) orange zest
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 g) red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) water
- 1 tablespoon (7 g) cornstarch
- 1 ½ pounds (680 g) boneless skinless chicken breasts , cut in 1-inch cube like pieces
- salt and pepper to taste
- ⅓ cup (42 g) corn starch
- ⅓ cup (42 g) flour
- 2 eggs , lightly beaten
- Oil for frying
- green onions , for garnishing (optional)
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In a large saucepan, combine chicken broth, orange juice, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, sriracha , ginger, garlic, lemon juice, orange zest and red pepper flakes. Place pan over medium high heat, bring sauce to a boil and simmer for a few minutes - about 3-4 minutes.
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In a small bowl, whisk together water and cornstarch to form a paste. Slowly stir cornstarch mixture into orange sauce. Continue cooking until sauce begins to thicken, about 5 minutes. Remove sauce pan from heat and set aside.
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Season chicken cubes with salt and pepper to taste. In a medium-sized shallow dish, whisk together cornstarch and flour, set aside. In a small shallow dish, whisk eggs. Dip chicken into egg mixture and then dredge in the cornstarch mixture. Place on a plate and set aside.
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Meanwhile, heat 2-3 inches of oil in a heavy bottom pot or wok over medium high heat. Working in small batches, fry chicken pieces stirring often until cooked through and golden brown - about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from oil and drain on a paper towel lined plate. Repeat the process for the remaining chicken cubes.
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Toss fried chicken pieces together with orange sauce, garnish with green onions and serve immediately with rice.
- Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used
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