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
- 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 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!
Bruce T
Had to fly by the seat of my pants to cut this down to one serving but it is excellent! Every bit as good as the frozen kind from Trader Joe's where the price has gone through the roof. (inflation, I'm sure.) Next time, I may see if I can make the full recipe and freeze it.
Bruce T
I made this a second time using almost the full orginal recipe (I was running out of chicken breast) and it was even better. I deep fried all of the chicken then put enough for a serving in the wok with a little oil, heated it up, and added some sauce. The extra went in the refrigerator. I had planned on freezing some but it was gone the next day. I had leftover rice as well and dinner the second day was done in ten minutes.
Paula
We loved this orange chicken! I thought I had a box of orange chicken in the freezer, but I just had plain chicken breasts so I tried your recipe. My family loved it!
Bonnie
This was delicious, it's definitely a keeper!
Modern Honey
Hi Bruce! I loved that you made this for one serving and it turned out great. Such a smart idea. Thank you for giving my orange chicken recipe a shot!
Yvonne Capriglione
I have made this at least 5 times!!! The only difference is I batter and deep-fry the chicken. GREAT RECIPE!!
Zazo
I'm very excited to try this recipe but I'm not sure what you do to the ginger for the sauce? Is it ground, crushed, chopped?
Thomas
Ginger powder works great
David
Omg!!! This was the first time i attempted to make orange chicken. I usually buy it from the Panda, unfortunately do to inflation enough said! It was better tasting, fresh ingredients helps! And we had enough to get second serving. It's absolutely delicious!
Thank you for the recipe. My family and i love it
alexa
Super yummy! I used thighs instead of breast and it was amazing. it tastes better than take out 🙂
Modern Honey
Hi Alexa! Great idea to use chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts for the orange chicken. I bet it made extra tender. Thank you for trying it out!
Rinda
It’s incredibly delicious!! My friend said much better than a Chinese restaurant, and my husband said this is one of the meals he would like to eat before he dies! Thank you so so much for sharing this recipe!
Modern Honey
Wow! Those are some high compliments. I appreciate you taking the time to comment. I am happy you all loved the Chinese Orange Chicken!
Dad Chef
Very good but I had to triple the breading and double the sauce to make enough for the 4 chicken breasts that I used. Either I cut the into too many pieces or I just had extra large chicken breasts. Either way, this was a huge hit with the whole family.
Modern Honey
I am so glad it was a hit with your family! I agree...it does depend on how large the chicken breasts are so you were smart to triple the breading. Thank you so much for your kind words and for trying my orange chicken recipe!
Naomi
Very tasty and easy to make!! I also added more seasoning to the orange chicken sauce and it was amazing!! 😀
Modern Honey
Thanks so much, Naomi! Great idea to add more seasonings to the orange sauce. I bet it tasted amazing!
Helen
I was skeptical about all the positive reviews but wow….just made this recipe. I regretted making it mid way because it was a lot of cooking and I worked all day but boy am I glad I did, and so are my fam. All of us loved it including picky husband and two kids (age 3 and 6). It was absolutely delicious. I followed everything except got lazy with the zest, so didn’t use zest. Very delicious orange chicken. Thank you!
Modern Honey
What a great endorsement! Thank you so much for taking the time to try the orange chicken recipe and I am so glad it was worth the effort. I appreciate the kind words!
Helen
I just remembered I actually used thigh instead and it was still great. Thank you for a great recipe!
Min
Has anyone tried this with an air fryer? If so, were there any mods to make? Thank You!
Diana K
Absolutely delicious!!! Everyone loved it! Will definitely make it again. Takes some time to fry all the chicken but worth it.
Modern Honey
I am so happy to hear that everyone loved the orange chicken! Thank you for taking the time to try my recipe.
Jennie
This is my go-to recipe for orange chicken. It's incredible, thank you so much for sharing it!
When I want to make it a bit healthier, I sub honey for the sugar and it works great. Also, the recipe as-is also tastes amazing with baked tofu instead of chicken if you're vegan!
Modern Honey
Hi Jennie! I love all of your suggestions. This orange chicken recipe is super adaptable so thank you for sharing your tips. I agree -- honey can easily be used and I hear that baked tofu tastes great too!
Tempest
Made this using frozen popcorn chicken, and it was delicious. I cooked the frozen popcorn chicken according to the instructions. Then I followed everything else in the recipe. It's better than take-out orange chicken. It's a repeat recipe at my home. Thanks for the fantastic recipe.
Modern Honey
Hi Tempest! I love the idea of using frozen popcorn chicken. It makes such an quick and easy orange chicken. Thank you so much for trying my recipe!
Samantha
I made this for my family and it was amazingly good. The chicken wasn't as crispy as I thought it was going to be, but it was still good. The orange sauce is amazing! This is better than take out for sure!
Modern Honey
Thank you, Samantha, for trying out the orange chicken recipe! So happy your family loved it. I agree...the homemade orange sauce is the best!
Jason
I made this tonight with my picky eater kids. They inhaled it and practically licked the plates! I made boiled broccoli with it to help sop up the extra sauce, which played very well with the overall flavor pallet. I think next time, I might add a bit more vinegar, as I found it a touch sweeter than I would have preferred, but very, very good, regardless.
Jenna
The sauce is outstanding! Wouldn't change a thing.
Dove
What type of oil is used?
Pat
Loved this recipe! I have never had much success with home-cooked Chinese food. It never quite tastes like the restaurant. However, this dish did! Any chance of working up a shrimp egg foo yung recipe? Would love to make that at home, Thanks.