Chinese Orange Chicken
Not even Panda Express can beat this homemade orange chicken!
Today was just one of those days. My photography shoot went awry. I burned myself when frying an egg. There was an ant party in my kitchen trash. I hit the worst kind of traffic on a Saturday afternoon for a 3 mile drive. The list goes on.
The highlight of my day was that I still had some of this orange chicken left. This is a Chinese favorite of mine, especially from Panda Express, involving crisp, fried chicken bites smothered in a wonderfully sweet and tangy orange sauce. There is a bit of prep work involved here but at the end of the day, nothing beats homemade, right? And believe me when I say that not even Panda Express will beat this version!
Chinese Orange Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons cornstarch, divided
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- ½ teaspoon sesame seeds
- 1 green onion, thinly sliced
For the marinade
- 1 cup chicken broth
- ½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
- ½ cup sugar
- ⅓ cup distilled white vinegar
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha, or more, to taste
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
Instructions
- To make the marinade, whisk together chicken broth, orange juice, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, orange zest, Sriracha, ginger and white pepper in a large bowl.
- In a gallon size Ziploc bag or large bowl, combine chicken and 2/3 cup of the marinade; marinate for at least 30 minutes, turning the bag occasionally. Drain the chicken from the marinade, discarding the marinade.
- Heat remaining marinade in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and stir in 2 tablespoons cornstarch combined with 2 tablespoons water. Cook, stirring frequently, until thickened about 1-2 minutes; keep warm.
- Working one at a time, dip the chicken into the eggs, then dredge in remaining 1 cup cornstarch, pressing to coat.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan. Working in batches, add chicken and fry until golden brown and cooked through, about 1-2 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate; discard excess oil.
- Serve chicken immediately, tossed or drizzled with the marinade, garnished with sesame seeds and green onion, if desired.
Did you make this recipe?
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I love this recipe… amazing! I just got a new air fryer that I want to try. Have you tried this in an air fryer?
So good!!!! Thank you so much!!!!
Family loved! Will make again for sure!
You’re recipes are always great! This one especially is a crowd pleaser! It’s the best orange chicken I have ever had. Thanks for all the great recipes you post. I use them all the time!
I made it tonight. So crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. The orange sauce was delicious. The serving size was right on. I had a perfect amount for my dinner guests. Lots of compliments. I did try a few pieces of the orange chicken in the air fryer. I was curious to see if I could save a few calories. Unfortunately it didn’t do well. It crisped up a little but never browned. It stayed the white color of the corn starch, so not very pleasing to the eye and wasn’t nearly as tasty as the fried chicken
Do you think it would work to make the chicken like your firecracker chicken recipe? Like coat it and cook on the stove then put in baking dish and pour the sauce on and bake, mixing every 15 mins or so? Works well for the firecracker chicken.
My family LOVED it. I have very picky eaters, and they all loved it. This will be made again and again! Thank you!!!
Can you make this like the firecracker chicken recipe on this site and after cooking coating/chicken partway on the stove, throw it in a baking dish with the sauce until cooked through/thicker?
Amazing Recipe Chung-Ah !
I’m having difficulty getting the chicken as crispy as I’d prefer but I’ll try double-dipping to layer the starch n see what that does…
Today is my 4th time making this – I’m going to add a pad thai twist to it. Not true Pad Thai but just the Pad Thai noodles added to create an Orange Chicken Pad Thai.
The first time I marinated for maybe an hour, the second & 3rd time I marinated for 8 hours, this batch is on a 24hr marinade. The 8hr marinade tastes far better than the 30 minute; hopefully the same can be said for the 24hr marinade. I think more than 24 would be overkill though, the orange zest has a waiting of culminating.
(I keep forgetting the seeds though, lol)
Delicious!!! I had chicken tenderloins on hand so used those, and made the recipe as written, SO good!
This is not a review but it is a question. Will this recipe hold up well if prepared as directed and then placed in a warmer/crock for serving at a buffet line for an open house
I made this last night and it was so good. Another great recipe!
So good!
Tips:
1. Yes, put the cornstarch and chicken in a large baggie to mix – so much faster, easier and cleaner.
2. I froze some uncooked chicken and unthickened sauce for later use – thawed it and then cooked per the recipe, and it turned out great too! In the future, I’ll be doubling this recipe so I can freeze half for later!
Amazing! I used chicken tenderloins because that is what I had, super tender. I also put the cornstarch in a ziploc and added my chicken after I drained off the extra egg as I do with other recipes. It made it less messy for me. Fresh squeezed orange juice is the key, do not substitute! My family says better than any restaurant. I have made it several times, worth the time.
This was spectacular! A little bit of work, but easy to do!
Will definitely be making this again!
This was fantastic! Better than any orange chicken I’ve had in a restaurant.
The only changes I made were adding rough chopped red bell pepper to the sauce and subbing fresh ginger for the powdered ginger, because I have a boatload of fresh ginger on hand. I finely minced about an inch and a half long knob. It added a very nice ginger tang. It is nice though to have the option to use powdered ginger because one doesn’t always have fresh on hand.
I will definitely be making this again. Thanks!
OMG this recipe was AHMAZING! The orange zest gave it a long lasting flavour after biting into the chicken. I could make this every week! Definitely on my list to make for my family again! They loved it! Check out the PF Chang Mongolian beef recipe on this site as well! Another great dish! I made both of these recipes two nights in a row. Definitely a follower of this site for good! Thank you for your efforts!
I give it a 10! Hands down! definitely making it again.
Love this recipe! We made it once as written and it was delicious and made a cheater version with the sauce as written and popcorn chicken in the air fryer instead of marinating and frying, also amazing!
Thank you for so detailed information. I just made this because i didn’t know how else to cook the boneless chicken breast i have thawed out and the sauce taste delicious.