Homemade Orange Chicken

My son loves orange chicken. It’s probably his favorite meal, so when we stopped eating out, this was a meal I needed to learn to recreate at home. This is made every year for his birthday dinner and he loves it. I hope you enjoy it too!

Ingredients

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into small pieces

1 cup corn starch

1/2 cup all purpose flour

2 eggs

Salt and pepper to taste

Vegetable oil for frying

Sauce

Juice and zest of 2 oranges, approximately 6.5 ounces

6 tablespoons soy sauce

6 tablespoons water

3/4 cup white vinegar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

3 tablespoons of corn starch

3 tablespoons of water

15 grams minced fresh ginger

15 grams minced garlic

1 tablespoon crushed red pepper – adjust this to taste

1 tablespoon oil – I prefer olive oil

Steps

  1. Start heating vegetable oil in fryer or Dutch oven to at least 350°F
  2. Mix corn starch and flour into large bowl
  3. Whisk eggs, salt and pepper in another bowl
  4. Take pieces of cut up chicken and put in the bowl with eggs to coat them
  5. Let excess egg drip off and put into bowl with flour to completely coat
  6. Depending on the size of the fryer or Dutch oven, the chicken may need to be fried in small batches. Fry chicken until golden brown and crunchy and internal temperature reaches at least 160°F
  7. Remove cooked chicken and put on paper towels to soak up any excess grease and then move to a rack until remaining chicken is complete
  8. In a small bowl, mix the orange juice, zest, soy sauce, 6 tablespoons water, vinegar, granulated sugar and sesame oil and whisk together
  9. In a warm skillet, add the tablespoon of oil, garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30-45 seconds
  10. Pour the liquid from step 8 and stir until boiling
  11. Once the mixture is boiling, make a cornstarch slurry by mixing the 3 tablespoons cornstarch with 3 tablespoons water
  12. Add the cornstarch slurry to the skillet and mix until the sauce starts to thicken
  13. Once the sauce is thickened, add the cooked chicken to the skillet to warm and coat the chicken
  14. Serve over rice with vegetables and enjoy!