Orange Chicken
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Crispy, golden chicken drenched in a sweet and tangy sauce—orange chicken is a Chinese American classic that’s surprisingly simple to master at home.
Orange chicken, a staple from Chinese American restaurants—and a favorite of my kids, especially the version from the fast-food chain Panda Express—features crispy, golden chicken drenched in a sweet and tangy sauce. Despite “orange” leading its name, the citrus flavor in the dish is subtle. The sauce is made from soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, and just a hint of orange juice, along with ginger, scallions, and garlic for added depth.
This recipe, similar to General Tso’s chicken in its preparation, might seem daunting, but it’s surprisingly doable at home. Give it a try—I promise, you’ll wow your family and also impress yourself with how delicious it is!
“3 teenage boys and two batches — no leftovers!!”
What You’ll Need To Make Orange Chicken
- Marinade: Egg, soy sauce, and a touch of brown sugar lightly season the chicken and help keep it tender and juicy.
- Chicken: Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are ideal for their richness and moisture, but breasts or tenderloins work well too when cut into bite-size pieces.
- Sauce: Soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, orange juice, and chicken broth create a sweet-savory, citrusy glaze, thickened with cornstarch and finished with sesame oil and red pepper flakes.
- Coating: A blend of cornstarch, flour, and a pinch of baking soda creates a light, craggy coating that fries up crisp and golden.
- For cooking and serving: Vegetable oil is used for frying, while ginger, garlic, and scallions add flavor at the end; serve over steamed rice to soak up the sauce.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Marinate the chicken. In a large bowl, beat the egg with the soy sauce and sugar. Add the chicken pieces and toss to coat evenly. Let it sit at room temp for 30 minutes.
Step 2: Make the sauce. In a small bowl, mix the soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, orange juice, chicken broth, cornstarch, sesame oil, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.
Step 3: Coat the chicken. In another bowl, whisk the cornstarch, flour, and baking soda. Sprinkle the mixture over the marinated chicken and toss until the pieces separate and look dry and clumpy.
Step 4: Fry the chicken. In a large nonstick skillet, heat about ¼ inch of oil over medium-high heat to 350°F. Working in 3 batches, shallow fry the chicken until golden brown and crispy, 4 to 5 minutes, flipping once. (Adjust the heat between batches to keep the oil around 350°F—if it gets too cool, the coating will absorb oil and turn greasy; too hot, and it may burn before the chicken cooks through.)
Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and repeat with the remaining chicken.
Step 5: Make the sauce base. Carefully drain and wipe out the skillet, then add about 1 tablespoon of fresh oil. Over medium heat, cook the ginger, garlic, and scallion whites for 30 seconds, stirring constantly—don’t let them brown. Sautéing the aromatics before adding the sauce builds depth of flavor without needing extra ingredients.
Step 6: Cook the sauce. Add the sauce mixture and bring to a boil. (Give the sauce mixture a quick stir again before pouring it into the pan—cornstarch tends to settle at the bottom.) Let it simmer until thickened and glossy, 2 to 3 minutes. This happens quickly, so keep a close eye on it.
Step 7: Finish and serve. Return the crispy chicken to the skillet and toss until evenly coated in the sauce. Sprinkle with scallion greens, serve, and enjoy!
Video Tutorial
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Orange Chicken
Ingredients
For the Marinade
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- ½ teaspoon light brown sugar
- 1½ lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs (or chicken breasts or tenderloins), cut into 1-in (2.5-cm) pieces
For the Sauce
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ½ cup (packed) light brown sugar
- ¼ cup distilled white vinegar
- ¼ cup orange juice, from 1 orange
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1½ teaspoons sesame oil
- ¾ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
For Coating the Chicken
- 1 cup cornstarch
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- Heaping ¼ teaspoon baking soda
For Cooking and Serving
- Vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon fresh minced ginger, from a 2-in (5-cm) knob
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 scallions, thinly sliced, white and green parts separated
- Rice, for serving
Instructions
- Marinate the chicken: In a large bowl, beat the egg, soy sauce and sugar. Add the chicken to the bowl and toss until evenly coated. Let marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- Make the sauce: In a small bowl, mix the soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, orange juice, broth, cornstarch, sesame oil, and pepper flakes together. Set aside.
- Coat the chicken: In a medium bowl, whisk the cornstarch, flour, and baking soda. Sprinkle over the chicken/marinade mixture and toss until each piece of meat separates and has a dry, clumpy coating.
- Fry the chicken: Line a plate with a few layers of paper towels and set next to the stove. In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, heat about ¼-in (6-mm) of oil to 350°F (175°C). You'll know it's ready when you drop a piece of chicken in, and it sizzles vigorously. Working in three batches so as not to crowd the pan, shallow-fry a third of the coated chicken until golden brown and crispy, 4 to 5 minutes, turning once midway through cooking and adjusting the heat as needed. Transfer the chicken to the paper towel-lined plate. Repeat with the remaining chicken.
- Finish the dish: Carefully drain the oil from the pan and wipe clean with a paper towel. Add about 1 tablespoon of oil. Over medium heat, add the ginger, garlic, and scallion whites. Cook, stirring constantly, for about 30 seconds until fragrant; do not brown. Add the sauce, bring it to a boil, and let it cook until thickened and glossy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the crispy chicken, tossing until the sauce fully coats it, 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle with the dark green scallions and serve over rice.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I love that this recipe shallow fries the chicken instead of deep frying. I have been looking for a recipe for orange chicken without deep frying for a long time & especially since restaurant prices have increased due to the higher cost of food. Delicious recipe! Thsnks!
I made this tonight and, other than reducing the sesame oil, followed the recipe precisely. It turned out great with one exception—we couldn’t taste the orange at all. I might make it again but I think I’d replace the chicken broth with orange juice. I’ve always had great luck with Jenn’s recipes so this leaves me a little confused 🙁
Hi Deb, The orange flavor is intentionally very subtle (that’s how it is in most restaurants). If you’d like a stronger orange flavor, the best way is to add a bit of orange zest at the very end. I’d start with just a 1/4 teaspoon and add more to taste — a little goes a long way and too much orange flavor will quickly overpower the dish. In testing the recipe, I found that adding more orange flavor tended to overwhelm the other ingredients, and my family definitely preferred it more subtle.
Great recipe, added orange zest and doubled the sauce.
Will be on the rotation.
Delish! My family loved it. We licked the plate clean!
This was amazing! Tastes just like Chinese takeout but SO much better.
Hi Jenn, Just tried the orange chicken absolutely fabulous five star you did it again. Thanks, Greg
3 teenage boys and two batches — no leftovers!! I paired the orange chicken with your fried rice recipe. It was the perfect combo. Thank you for sharing another delicious recipe.
Hi Jenn, could I fry this in a wok instead of a shallow pan?
Yes definitely 🙂
Hi, I am assuming nutritional info does not include rice? Thanks!
Correct!
Looks amazing! If I wanted to make it GF, could I use rice flour or do you think a 1:1 flour would be better? Thanks 😊
Hi Christine, I’d go with a 1:1 GF flour.
Thanks! Made for dinner tonight and it was delicious 😋
Do you think it would work to cook the chicken in the air fryer, keeping everything else the same?
Thank you.
Hi Bea, Unfortunately I don’t think you can cook the chicken in the air fryer – it really needs to be shallow fried to get the texture. Sorry!
I think you could use the air fryer but you would need to spray the chicken pieces well. I make buttermilk chicken tenders and breaded chicken breasts , and crispy tofu in the air fryer and they come out great.
Looks great! For this and some of your other American Chinese restaurant inspired recipes- can I substitute pork without making any big adjustments? So I don’t have to go to the grocery store today ….. 🙂
Yep!
Hi Jenn,
Your recipe looks so good! I plan on trying this recipe this week. If you serve this for your family with rice, what vegetables would you make with it? Or would there be any good veggies to add to this recipe?
Hi Ellen, I would keep it simple with steamed broccoli. You’ll have plenty of sauce, so you can either add the cooked veggies to the skillet after stirring in the chicken or serve separately. Please LMK how it turns out!
This was sooooo good! My husband and I have been trying for some time now to reach this texture of sauce and this flavour. This is the first receipe that really did it for us, thank you so much!
We just love your receipes❤️
Hi Jenn,
Love your blog and regularly use your recipes. Wondering if you could eliminate the flour in the chicken coating and just use more cornstarch to make the recipe gluten free?
Hi Kelly, I would replace the flour with a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend.