This recipe for Chinese orange chicken is tender and juicy with an addicting sauce that is sweet, sour and a little spicy!
Since I grew up in a place that had lots of Chinese restaurants and an amazing Chinese food culture, I was used to eating Chinese takeout and even occasionally making it at home. When I moved to Turkey, I found that apart from big cities, Chinese food was not as popular here especially specific menu items like orange chicken. I still crave Chinese food a lot but now I make it all at home with easy, simple ingredients and techniques that even a beginner can learn. One of the things that I really missed was Chinese Orange Chicken over stir fried rice. I eventually through trial and error learned to make it myself.
My Recipe for Authentic Chinese Orange Chicken
This is my recipe for Chinese Orange Chicken made with beautifully tender restaurant style chicken and covered in an authentic Chinese orange chicken sauce. Don’t just take my word for it, try it out and find out if this recipe really is better than a restaurants.
This easy orange chicken recipe has healthier ingredients than any restaurant and everything in this it is made from scratch. I love using different types of recipes especially in Asian inspired recipes like this one. I first learned about the viral Panda Express orange chicken recipe from a friend and then since I’d eaten it more than a few times, I decided to create my own recipe for Chinese orange chicken with a sweet orange sauce that would rival any restaurants. A recipe that would taste great but would be super easy to make.
Easy to Find Ingredients for Homemade Orange Chicken Recipe
My recipe for orange chicken is not only as delicious as any restaurant’s but it is also made from ingredients that you can find in your pantry. Sometimes recipes that are restaurant quality ask for ingredients that are hard to find at your local supermarket or in your pantry or are super expensive. I try to create recipes from scratch like this recipe for orange chicken that use easily available and local ingredients! For the orange chicken sauce, I used one orange, sugar, white vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, red chili flakes and cornstarch powder.
HOW TO MAKE CHINESE ORANGE CHICKEN AT HOME:
Julienne Cut Your Chicken
One of the most important things that will give your Chinese orange chicken the same texture as a restaurant’s is to cut your chicken julienne style like you’re cutting a vegetable. Take boneless skinless chicken breasts and cut them into thin long bite sized pieces that are not square.
Making the Chicken
Marinate your chicken pieces in soya sauce, salt pepper and cornstarch powder for 20 minutes. Now, shallow fry the chicken pieces in the oil of your choice on medium heat. You don’t need a lot of oil for this. Since we cut the chicken in this thin style, the chicken will fry easily. Take out the chicken and you will know when they are done when they are golden but with a light brown char. Remove the chicken and keep it aside.
Making the Orange Chicken Sauce
The Chinese orange sauce for this chicken is delectable! The sweet orange sauce includes orange juice, garlic, vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, ginger and red chili flakes. This homemade orange sauce has easy ingredients that are readily available in your pantry. The sauce is sweet, sour and spicy! To make it, mix all the ingredients and to a non-stick pan over medium heat. Cook until the raw taste of the ginger and garlic disappears, 3 to 5 minutes. Add cornstarch to water and add it to the pan to thicken the sauce. Your thick sweet and sticky orange sauce is ready!
Serving and Garnish
Now add the chicken to the sweet orange sauce in the pan and cook for a minute more to bring everything together! Top with toasted sesame seeds and green onions. Serve and Enjoy!
Chinese Orange Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
For the Chicken Marinade:
- 4 Boneless Chicken Breasts julienne cut into small strips
- 2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- 1 Teaspoon Black Pepper
- 2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
For the Orange Chicken Sauce:
- 1/2 cup Orange Juice
- 2 Tablespoons Sugar
- 1 Tablespoons White Vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
- 1/4 Teaspoon Ginger
- 1/4 Teaspoon Garlic diced
- 1/2 Teaspoon Red Chili Flakes
- 2 Tablespoon Cornstarch
- 4 Tablespoons water for cornstarch slurry
Optional Toppings:
- Green Onions
- Toasted Sesame Seeds
Instructions
- Cut your chicken into thin bite sized strips, julienne style.
- Make a marinade of soya sauce, salt, pepper and cornstarch. Coat the chicken in this batter.
- Shallow fry the chicken for 8 to 10 minutes to get it golden brown. Take out and place them to the side.
- In a bowl, add in orange juice, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce and red chili flakes and mix together.
- Pour this mixture into a pan on slow and while its heating, add in fresh grated garlic and fresh grated ginger.
- Now cook this sauce on medium heat for 3-5 minutes or until the raw flavors of the garlic and ginger are completely gone.
- Mix cornstarch to cold water until completely dissolved and a slurry is formed. Pour it into the simmering sauce. Mix until thick.
- Now add in the chicken to the sauce and toss together. Cook for a minute more together.
- Serve hot over rice and garnish with toasted sesame seeds and green onions!
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