I don’t know about the rest of you, but I always order orange chicken when I order Chinese food. I love it! So naturally, I had to try to make it myself. It’s just what I do these days…if you haven’t noticed. So, sometimes I will get a piece of orange chicken and it wasn’t properly trimmed or it is mostly breading, and that makes me not want to try a second piece. But if i make it myself, then I can make it all with chicken breast and I can control the amount of breading that is on the chicken. Also, I can adjust the spice level to my liking. 🙂
I love this recipe. The orange flavor is spot on and so tasty that I lick the plate clean! There is just enough breading on the outside to give a nice crunchy texture while it soaks up the sauce. The leftovers aren’t as crunchy, but they don’t get soggy either like typical Chinese take out. And it is so tasty, that while my husband and I were in the process of frying all the chicken, we couldn’t help ourselves and would sneak in a few tastes. If I had the time, I would always make this version of orange chicken then ordering out. Now, I just need to see if I can freeze the already made sauce, so next time is easier….
Lesson’s Learned:
- Take photos after eating. Don’t delay feeding a hungry husband when one of his favorite meals is right before his eyes. Your future self and your current husband will thank you.
- Preparing the ingredients at an earlier time for this recipe really helped speed along the cooking process.
- Frying the chicken in batches will take a while, so keep already cooked pieces someplace warm. Also, the freshly made sauce will help heat up the chicken a little when poured over.
- Adjust the spice level with more or less crushed red pepper flakes.
- Make more next time.
- Zest the fruit before getting the juice out…trust me…
- 2 lb chicken, cut into bit sized pieces (about 1" cubed)
- 1½ cup flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- 2 eggs, scrambled
- canola oil for frying
- 1½ cups water
- 2 Tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice (about 1 orange)
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1 really juicy lemon)
- ⅓ cup rice vinegar
- 2½ Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp orange zest (zest of about 1 orange)
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- ½ tsp minced ginger
- ½ tsp minced garlic
- 2 Tbsp sliced green onion
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes (or more depending on your spice preference. I just keep shaking in the red pepper flakes until my husband smiles. It takes a few minutes of shaking....)
- 3 tsp corn starch
- 2 Tbsp water
- Garnish: red pepper flakes, sliced green onions
- Put oil in pot over medium heat, and bring it up to about 375 degrees F.
- While the oil is heating up, create your chicken assembly line. In a small bowl, beat the eggs together. In a plastic bag, mix the flour, salt, and pepper. First dip the chicken pieces into the eggs and coat them thoroughly. Shake of any excess egg gently and put into the flour mixture bag. Close bag and shake well until chicken pieces are coated. Coat chicken pieces in small batches.
- When oil is at temperature, add some flour-coated chicken pieces to the hot oil. Fry for about 10 minutes or until golden brown. Fry chicken in batches and be careful not to over crowd the pan. It will cause the temperature to drop and it will take longer for the chicken to cook.
- While the chicken is frying, or after depending on your multitasking abilities, prepare the sauce. Combine water, orange juice, lemon juice, vinegar, and soy sauce in a sauce pan and put over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. When boiling, add the orange zest, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, green onion, and red pepper flakes. Mix until all all ingredients are combined and sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil again.
- While the sauce is coming to a boil again, mix the corn starch and 2 Tbsp of water together in a small container with a lid. Shake well to combine. Add cornstarch mixture to the boiling sauce. Stir thoroughly. The sauce will thicken slightly after a few minutes. If sauce is too runny, add more cornstarch (mix cornstarch with a little bit of water before adding to sauce. Otherwise it will clump.) Remove from heat.
- Coat the already fried chicken pieces with the sauce. Make sure that all the pieces have a good coat of sauce. Garnish with extra red pepper flakes or sliced green onions.
(inspired by Blogchef)
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