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easy orange chicken

(4 ratings)
cataharin avatar
Blue Ribbon Recipe by
Cathie Valentine
@cataharin
Graniteville, SC

One of my employees used to own a few restaurants and he told me the secret to making crunchy yet juicy fried chicken. It is the corn starch step. It really works. I served this at the beach last summer and my daughter and law said this might be the best meal I have had. I said at the beach this week? She replied, No, ever!!

Blue Ribbon Recipe

One of our favorite things to order for take-out is orange chicken. Cathie's easy recipe means we can make it at home anytime a craving hits. Using corn starch helps to make the chicken extra crispy. The sauce is sweet, but not too sweet, and the chicken soaks up all its delicious orange flavor. Serve over steamed rice for the perfect at-home take-out dish.

— The Test Kitchen @kitchencrew
(4 ratings)
yield 4 -6
prep time 20 Min
cook time 25 Min
method Deep Fry

Ingredients For easy orange chicken

  • 2 - 3
    boneless skinless chicken breast (or thighs if you prefer)
  • 1 - 2 c
    corn starch
  • 1 - 2 c
    all-purpose flour
  • 1 - 2 lg
    eggs
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • ORANGE SAUCE
  • 1 c
    pulp free orange (I use Tropicana)
  • 3 Tbsp
    light brown sugar

How To Make easy orange chicken

Test Kitchen Tips
The sauce does reduce and thicken after a while. So if you like your chicken very saucy, we suggest making an extra batch of the sauce.
  • Pieces of chicken with corn starch on a baking sheet.
    1
    Rinse chicken. Cut chicken into bite-size pieces and rinse again with cold water. **DO NOT PAT DRY - LEAVE WET** Roll each piece of wet chicken into the corn starch coating well. Place the coated chicken on a cookie sheet without putting them on top of each other. Let dry completely. At this point, start heating up your oil (either to deep fry or pan fry your chicken).
  • Egg in one bowl, seasoned flour in a second bowl.
    2
    Have 2 pans ready. 1 with the large egg beaten and the other with flour that has salt and pepper mixed through it well.
  • Coating chicken in egg and flour.
    3
    Take each piece of chicken, dip it into the egg then roll it in the flour to coat.
  • Frying the pieces of chicken.
    4
    Drop into the oil when it is hot. Fry your chicken as you would usually. Remove the chicken and place it on a platter that has paper towels on it to absorb any excess oil.
  • Sauce ingredients cooking in a wok.
    5
    In a wok or large frying pan, add the orange juice and brown sugar, mixing well with a spoon. Cook the orange juice mixture for a good 10 minutes or until the sauce reduces by half. Remove from the heat.
  • Sauce coating the chicken.
    6
    Add the chicken and coat well with the mixture. Serve immediately.
  • 7
    Note: my husband is a picky eater, so I leave him out enough chicken so he can eat it plain. This is a great way to get very crunchy and juicy fried chicken!!
  • 8
    I usually make some jasmine rice ahead and place it in the refrigerator to get cold. Then I stir fry it with soy sauce, a few eggs, sesame seeds, and scallions. (I leave some of the scallions out to garnish my dish) I also wok some broccoli florets in a little Hoisin Sauce just enough to cook them but leave a crunch to serve with this dish.
  • Last Step: Don't forget to share! Make all your friends drool by posting a picture of your finished recipe on your favorite social network. And don't forget to tag Just A Pinch and include #justapinchrecipes so we can see it too!
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