An easy orange chicken recipe that creates crispy chicken without deep-frying and a scrumptious orange sauce that is very fragrant and not too sugary. Make this dish at home to enjoy restaurant style Chinese food made with healthier ingredients! {Gluten-Free Adaptable}
An easy orange chicken recipe that creates crispy chicken without deep-frying and a scrumptious orange sauce that is very fragrant and not too sugary. Make this dish at home to enjoy restaurant style Chinese food made with healthier ingredients!
Originating from the fusion of Chinese and American flavors, orange chicken has become an iconic symbol of Chinese-American takeout. The dish’s roots can be traced back to the 1930s when Chinese immigrants settled in the United States and adapted their traditional recipes to suit the American palate. Orange chicken, with its crispy battered chicken pieces coated in a tangy and citrusy sauce, soon emerged as a popular favorite, blending the best of both culinary worlds.
Today, I want to share my own version of orange chicken:
- Compared to the dishes you usually get from takeout, this one uses way less oil to cook.
- The orange sauce uses tangerine skin to add a depth of flavor.
- This recipe uses more aromatics and less sugar to create a balanced sauce that is not too sweet.
My goal was to create a fragrant and delicious orange chicken that is not loaded with oil, salt or sugar, so you won’t feel guilty enjoying it!
Orange chicken ingredients
Tangerine peels
I used dried tangerine peel (陈皮, Chen Pi) in this recipe. Compared to fresh orange peel, dried tangerine skin has a deeper fragrance and more rounded taste. In Chinese cooking, it is also highly praised in traditional Chinese medicine due to its warming properties. You can easily find tangerine peel in most Chinese markets and also on Amazon.
If you do not have tangerine peel, I highly recommend using fresh tangerine peel for this dish. Instead of zesting the peel, I prefer to use a peeler to remove the outer layer of orange colored skin. Then I slice the peels into thin pieces. It adds a nice flavor with a good presentation, without making the dish too zesty.
What cut of chicken to use
I prefer to use chicken thigh due to its flavor. Plus chicken thigh will stay juicier during the cooking process. However, feel free to use chicken breast if you prefer.
Mise en place
When you’re ready to cook, your table should have:
- Orange chicken sauce
- Marinated chicken coated with cornstarch
- Green onion and garlic (you can further combine both into a bowl for easy cleanup later)
How to cook orange chicken
Cooking orange chicken is super easy.
- Brown the chicken with a layer of oil in the pan.
- Saute the aromatics.
- Pour in the sauce and allow to thicken.
- Add back the chicken and stir to coat with the sauce.
Once you try this method, you won’t need to hunt down another recipe to create crispy chicken!
Cooking notes
What pan to use for making orange chicken?
A large nonstick skillet is my favorite for making orange chicken. Not only can you properly sear all the chicken pieces in one batch, but you can also use less oil. One thing to note, orange chicken sauce is slightly acidic, so it may damage the seasoning on your skillet if you use a cast iron or carbon steel pan.
Let the chicken pieces cool off before mixing with the sauce
Once you sear all the chicken pieces, it’s best to let the chicken cool off for 2 to 3 minutes first. The crust will crisp up a bit more during this time. And the crust will hold up to the sauce better without turning soggy immediately after you add the liquid ingredients.
How to serve orange chicken
You can serve orange chicken as a main course by itself, or with steamed rice for a one-bowl meal. To make a full Chinese meal, try it with egg drop soup and my 4-ingredient bok choy stir fry. I also like to serve my orange chicken with this 5-minute egg fried rice dish.
Other delicious Chinese takeout
- Chicken Lo Mein (Restaurant Style Without A Wok)
- Beef with Snow Peas
- Crispy Peanut Butter Chicken
- Pork Chop Suey
- Cashew Chicken (腰果鸡丁)
Chinese Orange Chicken (Crispy Chicken without Deep Frying)
Ingredients
Sauce (Or use 1 cup pre-made orange sauce)
- 2 tablespoons dried tangerine peel (or fresh orange peel, or fresh tangerine peel)
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce (or soy sauce)
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)
- 2 tablespoons sugar (or 3 tablespoons if you prefer a sweet dish like takeout)
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Marinade
- 1 (14 oz / 400 g) large boneless skinless breast , cut to 1” (2.5-cm) pieces (or 2 chicken thighs) (*footnote 1)
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
Stir-fry
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 3 green onion , sliced (white part for cooking and green part for garnishing)
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
Instructions
Sauce
- Place dried tangerine peel in a small bowl and add hot water to cover. Let soak for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the tangerine peel softens. Drain and finely slice. Transfer 2 tablespoons of sliced tangerine peel to a bowl. You can save the rest of the rehydrated tangerine peel in an airtight container in the fridge for next time or discard it. If you do not use dried tangerine peel, grate an orange to make 1 tablespoon orange zest, or thinly slice 2 tablespoons of tangerine peel (*Footnote 2).
- Add the rest of the sauce ingredients to the bowl with the tangerine peel. Mix well.
Prep chicken
- Combine chicken, oil, and salt in a big bowl. Mix well and let marinate for 15 minutes.
- When you’re ready to cook, add the beaten egg. Stir to mix well. Add cornstarch. Stir to coat chicken, until it forms an uneven coating with a little dry cornstarch left unattached.
Cook
- Heat oil in a large skillet until hot, just starting to smoke. Add chicken all at once and spread into a single layer in the skillet. Separate chicken pieces with a pair of tongs or chopsticks.
- Cook without touching the chicken for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the bottom turns golden. Flip to brown the other side, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer chicken to a big plate and remove the pan from the stove. Let cool for 2 to 3 minutes (very important, so the chicken crisps up further).
- Place the pan back on the stove and turn to medium heat. You should still have 1 to 2 tablespoons of oil in the pan. If there’s too much oil, pour out or use paper towels to remove the excess oil. Add green onion and garlic. Cook and stir a few times until it releases fragrance.
- Stir the sauce again to dissolve the cornstarch completely. Pour into the pan. Stir and cook until it thickens.
- Add back the chicken. Stir to coat chicken with sauce. Transfer to a plate and serve hot as a main dish.
Notes
- You can use this recipe to cook 340 to 450 grams (12-oz. to 1-lbs) chicken.
- If using fresh tangerine, very thinly peel off the outer skin using a peeler, then slice it as thinly as you can. I prefer this over the zesting method due to the flavor, texture, and presentation.
Great recipe. Made this tonight, and added snow peas to make a one-dish meal, with steamed rice. Excellent sauce.
I really like your method, alternative to deep-frying. Batter is crisp,chicken is moist and tender. Sauce was excellent. (I used a fresh orange, all the zest, and the juice.)
Thanks for all the great recipes, and images.
Maggie,
Thank you very much for posting this recipe. I made this and my family really enjoyed it. I’m an American and my husband is Chinese. I find Chinese cooking to be very difficult ( frying, long and confusing ingredient lists, often no recipe, etc.) Your website has really helped me understand Chinese cooking. I cannot tell you how appreciative I am! Additionally, I look forward to cooking the other recipes listed on this site.
24 The LORD bless you and keep you;
25 the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
26 the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. – Numbers 6:24-26
Turned out exactly as described.
Thank you!
I really enjoyed this recipe and I hope a lot of traffic is directed to your site during this time. I actually thought it tasted a little more on the orange side than I’m used to – I did use orange peel. Is the recommended tangerine peel more subtle?
Yeah the tangerine peel is less pungent a bit more roundup. Fresh orange should work too, but if tastes too much for you, you can halve the grated orange peel next time.
What kind of sugar do we use… brown or white? Can’t wait to try this with the no deep frying technique.
This recipe uses regular white sugar. Happy cooking!
Your recipes look so good! I would love to try this method for crispy chicken, however my son is allergic to egg. Is there something I can substitute for the egg? Or could it still work without the egg??
Hi Serra, I have another recipe uses a coating without the egg: https://omnivorescookbook.com/pineapple-chicken/
You can totally use the method in the orange chicken recipe. It will produce a very crispy texture as well.
Just discovered your website and I’m excited to try this soon! Just wondering, does this recipe also work if you want to cook the chicken in an air fryer?
The batter is not the dry type so you might need to place the chicken in the air fryer tray (not the basket). I’ve never tried but I think it should work.
Great tasting meal. I added eggplant and zucchini to make a complete meal in one dish. The sauce adds a lovely taste has a pleasant after taste. Mmm
Mm
We just made this recipe tonight. The marinating/frying technique is spot on. Don’t skimp on the corn starch. I would decrease the orange zest just a bit next time. Thank you for a delicious way to make orange chicken at home!
The orange sauce really tasted restaurant-made. Very delicious.
Just made this for dinner and it was outstanding. I was a little doubtful that the chicken would turn out as crispy as fried, but it did! I used tangelos from our tangelo tree (zest and juice) and it was better than takeout. I will definitely be making this again 🙂
Made this last night. This along with the crispy tofu/shrimp dish which I just made, makes four straight days of Maggie recipes. I do wish that people sending in comments would do so AFTER they try recipes, otherwise the comments are not particularly valuable.
This was fun to make and delicious! It was fun zesting 2 oranges (I doubled the recipe).
I ran out of rice wine vinegar so I used half aged sherry vinegar. Chicken came out crispy and my deep cast iron skillet wasn’t coated with cooked batter. Sauce was delicious –added 1 tsp of crushed red pepper for a touch of heat.
I am a photographer –like seeing the Nikon slung around your neck.
This recipe was fantastic! Thank you!
This was fast, easy & delicious! And held up well as left-overs as there are only two of us.
Dear Maggie, thank you so very much for taking the time to share your recipes! I can’t wait to try them. 🙂 Have a super day! Romans 10:9-10; John 3:16-17
I loved this recipe so much!
I’ve been making Orange Chicken (and beef) for awhile using orange zest for the sauce. I finally dried my own tangerine skins and made the sauce as instructed. We love it and use the sauce on other boring dinners! Thanks for developing techniques and ingredients compatible with cooking in the US
Delicious, simple and relatively quick! Great orange flavour.
I can’t wait to use this method of frying chicken as a basis for other sauces, too. Excellent recipe.
Can you try this with tempeh or tofu?
Definitely. I think tofu will work better. Tempeh has its own fermented taste and I prefer to use it in savory dishes. That being said, it’s totally OK to use tempeh in this dish as well.