Back in 2008, I finally got around to making one of the many recipes that I had from Blog Chef. He has a lot of Asian dishes and I have been wanting to try her Orange Chicken recipe. My family loves orange chicken but we usually get it from a restaurant (usually Panda Express) or buy it in the grocery store’s frozen food section.
This turned out so good. I was hoping for a little more spice along with the sweetness, so I’ll probably add more red pepper next time. Also, I didn’t have any ginger root so I used a little ground ginger. I know that’s a faux pas in Asian cooking, but it’s what I had. The actual ginger root may have help with the flavor also.
It was very good but you may want to do it the cheater way. You can just make the sauce and put it over cooked popcorn chicken. I personally can’t stand the mess of deep frying the breaded chicken. The excess flour leaves a big mess in the bottom of the fryer too. I would be a much better cook if I had someone to clean up the mess for me after. I may do the whole chicken thing. However, I just don’t think I’ll do it that often.
Orange Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut into 1-1/2” cubes)
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 eggs (beaten)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- Oil (for frying)
- Orange Sauce:
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 2 Tbsp orange juice
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/3 cup rice vinegar
- 2 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp orange zest (grated)
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp ginger root (minced)
- 1/2 tsp garlic (minced)
- 2 Tbsp green onion (chopped)
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 3 Tbsp cornstarch
- 2 Tbsp water
Instructions
- Combine flour, salt, and pepper. Dip chicken in egg mixture and shake in flour mixture to coat. Deep fry chicken in batches at 375 degrees in a deep fryer (or use a wok) until completely cooked.
- Meanwhile, in a large saucepan combine 1 ½ cups water, lemon juice, orange juice, rice vinegar, and soy sauce. Blend well over medium heat for a few minutes. Stir in brown sugar, orange zest, ginger garlic, and onion. Bring to a boil.
- Combine 3 tablespoons of cornstarch with 1/4 cup of water and mix thoroughly. Slowly stir cornstarch mixture into sauce until it thickens. Pour sauce over breaded chicken, and if desired add red pepper flakes and garnish with green onions. Enjoy.
These are the original photos from this post when it was first posted in July 2008.
4 comments
oh my word!!!!! thank you so much for this yummy recipe…oh man! you have no idea how much I love this stuff :o)
~simply~
This looks so good !
I have been craving Panda Express and orange chicken so badly lately! I would love to try making this from scratch, but I can see how the “cheater” version would be easier with less clean up!
Oh, you said PANDA EXPRESS. I love that place and have it a few times a month on my lunch hour. The Panda Bowls are just perfect and the chicken mushroom over steamed rice is one of their healthiest versions. Have you been online to look at their nutritional menu. It’s handy!!! I’ll never order takeout now that Panda Express exists.
This recipe looks fantastic too!!!!