Chinese Orange Chicken made with crispy fried chicken covered in an authentic orange sauce. The ultimate Chinese Orange Chicken Recipe which is way better than take-out.
My kids are always begging me to take them to grab Chinese food. They are obsessed with orange chicken but I am never really sure what's in it....especially if they get it from a drive-thru. I wanted to create a version at home, made from scratch, with all-natural ingredients. It still has the same incredible flavor they love. It's definitely a win-win in our home.
It is wintertime in Arizona which means that the citrus is ripe for the picking. I am surrounded by neighbors who have a plethora of fresh oranges and lemons hanging from their trees. This is the perfect time of year to whip up orange and lemon dishes especially this Chinese Orange Chicken.
This Chinese Orange Chicken is made with boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces, dredged, and then fried until golden and crispy. The orange sauce is divine! It is a sweet orange sauce made with orange juice, vinegar, garlic, sugar, soy sauce, ginger, red chili flakes, and orange zest. It is both sweet and spicy and full of flavor.
How to make Chinese Orange Chicken at home:
- Start with boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs. Cut into bite-size pieces. Dredge the chicken in whisked eggs and cornstarch/flour mixture until nice and coated. Get these chicken pieces ready for the oil.
- To make your homemade orange sauce, place orange juice, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and red chili flakes in a small pot and cook over medium-high heat. Add cornstarch and water and cook until thickened. Stir in orange zest.
- Heat oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. When frying foods, it is so helpful to use a thermometer. Let the oil heat up to 350 degrees. Once the oil is ready, in batches, cook chicken for about 2 minutes until light golden brown. Repeat with remaining chicken.
- Remove from oil and drain on a paper towel-lined plate.
- Toss fried chicken with the sweet orange sauce. Top with grated orange zest and green onions. Serve immediately.
Chinese Orange Chicken
Ingredients
Chicken:
- 4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts cut into bite-size pieces
- 3 Eggs whisked
- ⅓ cup Cornstarch
- ⅓ cup Flour
- Salt
- Oil for frying
Orange Chicken Sauce:
- 1 cup Orange Juice
- ½ cup Sugar
- 2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar or White Vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce use tamari for a gluten-free dish
- ¼ teaspoon Ginger
- ¼ teaspoon Garlic Powder or 2 garlic cloves, finely diced
- ½ teaspoon Red Chili Flakes
- Orange Zest from 1 orange
- 1 Tablespoon Cornstarch
Garnish:
- Green Onions
- Orange Zest
Instructions
- To make orange sauce:
- In a medium pot, add orange juice, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and red chili flakes. Heat for 3 minutes.
- In a small bowl, whisk 1 Tablespoon of cornstarch with 2 Tablespoons of water to form a paste. Add to orange sauce and whisk together. Continue to cook for 5 minutes, until the mixture begins to thicken. Once the sauce is thickened, remove from heat and add orange zest.
- To make chicken:
- Place flour and cornstarch in a shallow dish or pie plate. Add a generous pinch of salt. Stir.
- Whisk eggs in shallow dish.
- Dip chicken pieces in egg mixture and then flour mixture. Place on plate.
- Heat 2 -3 inches of oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Using a thermometer, watch for it to reach 350 degrees.
- Working in batches, cook several chicken pieces at a time. Cook for 2 - 3 minutes, turning often until golden brown. Place chicken on a paper-towel-lined plate. Repeat.
- Toss chicken with orange sauce. You may reserve some of the sauce to place on rice. Serve it with a sprinkling of green onion and orange zest, if so desired.
Video
This Orange Chicken is going to make you forget take-out. Let me know how it turns out by reaching out on instagram at @modern_honey. Have a great night, my friends!
Brooke
This recipe is great! My boyfriend even said that we don’t have to get take out anymore because this is better. Fairly easy for it being a normally complex meal. Definitely going to make again!
Vanessa
This was fantastic! I actually had to sub lemon juice (1/2) for orange juice because of course one of my teenagers put an empty oj container back in the fridge. With the lemon substitute it was still delicious and a huge hit with my two sons and my husband! I served over jasmine rice with steamed broccoli- perfect! I can't wait to try some more of your recipes.
Yvonne
Has anyone tried making this in an air fryer? My husband is trying to cut out foods fried in a lot of oil but I'm really craving orange chicken and am hoping this will work in the fryer.
Trista
We are an allergy family and this recipe was awesome! We used enerG egg replacer, gluten free flour and coconut aminos instead of soy. Still turned out perfect! Great recipe!
Ashley Tetz
Which GF flour did you use?
Tim
Excellent, would recommend cutting back on sugar (possibly half what's called for, I'll have to experiment) as i found the only flaw was the sauce was a bit too sweet. Other than that it was delicious and served me just the right amount using about a pound of chicken. Will definitely make again, on a bed of rice next time
Amie
We all really enjoyed this, even my 89 year old Mom. It will definitely be on our roster. The only changes I made was to use buttermilk to moisten the chicken instead of the egg mixture, since my teen is allergic to egg, and we didn't add the chili. Thank you so much for sharing.
Kacey Hardin
This recipe is AMAZING. (My little secret - I used frozen chicken tenders to make it as quick as possible and everyone still raved about it.) I like trying new things, but after the finished product I always say to myself "...Mine does not look like that." This dish turned out perfectly. I added a bag of sautéed pepper and onion blend and heated/sautéed broccoli to make it go further and that only added to the already delicious and very easy meal. The family wants it weekly - good news for me because it was so simple and healthy (except for yes I know I used frozen chicken.)
Christy
I love this option! I plan on using popcorn chicken with some frozen brocolli because the sauce is just so fresh and delicious!
Kathy D.
Hi there....Just made THIS!!! My boys wanted Orange Chicken, and it was a hit!!! I doubled the sauce recipe though, because we like alot of sauce on our rice!! It was amazing!! I also added garlic to the chicken as it fried, along with the salt. It turned out wonderful!! A Big YUUUUUMMMMMM from our family!!!!!
Jessica C
I made this tonight since my husband was craving it. This was my first attempt to orange chicken. It was absolutely tasty!!! A few things I tweaked was I doubled the sauce and put alittle less sugar and a tiny bit less powdered ginger. I used minced garlic from a jar. Lastly I used gluten free all purpose flour and gluten free soy sauce. It still came out super yummy! I used the green onions and tons of orange zest into the sauce.
Sophia
OMG! I was craving orange chicken late at night but didnt want to drive to get it from a fast food restaurant. This is the first recipe I stumbled on and it. is. amazing!! I followed the recipe to a T and my whole family loved it. P.S., this was my first time making orange chicken. Thank you for the wonderful recipe!! Also, I found that vegetable cooks well with the chicken as olive oil makes it stick and fall apart. 🙂
Camiela
What can I use to substitute cornstarch will love to try this recipe now
Elijah Davidson
I didn't have cornstarch on hand, but if you need one tablespoon of cornstarch then use two tablespoons of flour. I did that with all the cornstarch in the recipe and it turned out perfect. Good luck!
Payton
OMG BEST ORANGE CHICKEN EVER ????
Emlyn Martinez
It came out delicious
Teresa
I made the sauce exactly according to the recipe and it came out amazing!! I didn’t fry the chicken, as my boyfriend and I are trying to eat a tad healthier, so I baked the chicken and it came out amazing!! Thanks so much for this!!
Theresa
Amazing recipe! I tried it and it was easy to follow. Everyone loved it! Thank you!
Kayla
Better than take out has just the right kick to it kid approved as well very easy to make love it
Donna D.
Wonderful recipe! Huge hit in my house!! I also doubled the amount of sauce, I wouldn't have had enough with my 4 large chicken breasts. Next time I will cut the sugar in half and add honey. It was sweet and the kids loved the sweetness, but I'll try to cut it a bit.
Kc
This was delicious! I didn't have ginger on hand but put more orange zest and it was great. I'm going to have to keep some ginger so I can whip this up again!
Ryan Ketcheson
Fresh ginger stores very well in the freezer. I grate it with a microplane while it is still frozen.
Janina
I’m so glad I stumbled upon this! I grew up in the U.S. and Orange Chicken was always my go to when ordering out. I live in Germany now and crave this on the regular and this isn’t on the menus here. Here it’s all about Peanut and Curry sauce. So I’m never able to satisfy that craving. Until I tried this!!! This hit the spot. Thank you so much!
T Bassene
Orange chicken is on all the menus at a Chinese restaurant. It's usually my go to wish as well and I have lived in 4 different states and have eaten in all places
Giana Epps
Same experience here! My boyfriend and I have been in the UK for a few months and the Chinese here is SEVERELY lacking in orange chicken. But I made this for him and his British family one night when we were craving it and he said it tasted just like my local Chinese restaurant’s orange chicken back home.. and his family had never had it before, but they loved this too!
Cara E Lamont
How many people does this serve?
Yvonne Hill
This was absolutely awesome!! Will make again only without so many red pepper flakes. I doubled the sauce recipe❤️