Orange Chicken

This Orange Chicken recipe is sweet and sticky and oh so good. This is another fake-away. These are the recipes that I really love to share. The ones that people often wouldn’t try at home. Once you try this I promise you will love it too. The joy of making your favourite take away dishes at home is that you know exactly what goes into them. You can be absolutely aware of every ingredient. This Orange Chicken is one of my go to fake away dishes and hope you will adopt it into your kitchen.

There are a couple of steps to this but each step is manageable and important. I will not be asking you to deep fry as there is some shallow frying to be done then baking. You may think that this would result in tough over cooked chicken. You could not be further from the truth however. This is some of the moistest, most flavourful chicken you will taste. The outer coating keeps the moisture in and it is the most tender chicken you will make. I use chicken breast for this dish of course chicken thighs would also work. 

The outer coating on this Orange Chicken is very simple; you roll the diced chicken in cornflour then dip in beaten egg and then fry in oil. This is then cooked in the sauce that will thicken and get glossy and sticky. If you want crispier chicken bites then cook on a baking tray for 20 minutes and reduce the sauce in a saucepan, then combine. I like that the sauce and chicken cook together. Firstly because it reduces washing up slightly and more importantly it tastes so good.

The sauce for this Orange Chicken is, as the name suggests, very orange forward. This is because I use the juice of two oranges and the zest of one. This really gives the chicken a great citrus hit that wakes up all the other flavours in the dish. If you like you can add more chilli flakes to increase the heat – remember that sugar actively reduces chilli heat. There is sugar in this recipe and so I am not telling you this is an ‘every day food’ rather this is a treat meal that will leave you very very satisfied and can be worked into a balanced diet. I am very much of the opinion that no foods are ‘taboo’ and there is room for every food type in a balanced lifestyle.

I first came across Orange Chicken in America and it has become something I actively seek out if I am state side. We all know that calories do not count on holiday/vacation and I definitely take advantage of this school of thought. This is my recreation of the orange chicken I love. If you want to find out more about my food adventures in America take a look at the Food On My Travels page. 

If you love the idea of fake-away cooking then you need to check out my Beef and Broccoli Rice a healthier version of the take away classic. This is a super quick recipe that you can have from fridge to table in less time than it takes to get it delivered. Also my Sticky Honey Garlic Chicken is super quick, and tasty. 

What’s your favourite take away? Let me know in the comments below. If you try this recipe let me know how you get on. You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter & Pinterest. Why not share your pictures with me using the hashtag #CUBBintheKitchen to be featured in my stories.

Orange Chicken

Sticky, Sweet and Oh so good! This Fakeaway recipe is sure to be a hit!

5 from 2 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 55 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Chinese

Servings 2

Calories 664 kcal

Ingredients

  

For the Sauce

• 200 ml Orange Juice the juice from 2 Oranges
• Zest of 1 Orange
• 6 tbsp Brown Sugar
• 4 tbsp Rice Vinegar
• 0.5 tsp Sesame Oil
• 1 tsp Chilli Flakes
• 1 Clove Garlic
• 1 tbsp Fresh Ginger Grated
• 1 tbsp Cornflour dissolved in 1 tbsp Water

For the Chicken

• 1 Chicken Breast
• 50 grams Cornflour
• 1 Egg
• Oil to Fry

Instructions

 

• Oven On – Preheat the oven to 180°C 
• Mix Up the Sauce – In a large bowl place the Orange Juice, Zest, Brown Sugar, Rice Vinegar, Sesame Oil, Chilli Flakes. Grate in the Garlic Clove and Ginger Then stir to dissolve the sugar. Now stir in the Cornflour dissolved in water. Set aside.
• Set Up – In one bowl place the 50g Cornflour and in another beat the Egg. Now put a saucepan on a medium heat and pour in about 1cm of oil let it heat up.
• Chicken Time – Dice up the Chicken into bite-sized chunks (about 2cm or 1 inch) Now roll the chicken in corn flour until coated then dip in egg, shake off excess and put into hot oil. (The egg coating should puff up and sizzle turn once golden should take about 2 minutes a side depending on the heat of your oil. You can do this set in batches set the golden chicken into an ovenproof dish.
• Chicken & Sauce – Once all your chicken has been fried golden and is in the dish, pour over the sauce and put in the hot oven for 30 minutes. Stirring after 15 minutes.
• Time to Eat – Once 30 minutes are up the sauce should be thick, sticky and glossy. Serve with boiled rice, fried rice or noodles.

Notes

LEFTOVERS TIP

This chicken is delicious and so leftovers are not guaranteed. However if you do have some left over I like to combine them with matchsticks of raw carrot, cucumber and spring onion in rice paper ‘summer rolls’ and the citrus sauce from the chicken makes a great dipping sauce. 

Keyword Chicken, Chinese, Dinner, Entertaining, Fakeaway, Family, Lunch, Orange, Takeaway, Tasty, Zest