Crispy Orange Chicken

 

Man, I love Chinese food. It has been a cuisine that has eluded me for years. I just haven’t been able to get my flavors right, and at the end of the day, I want to hit the takeout and call it a night.

 

 

But, alas I am not good a quitting and I had to figure this out. I discovered that the thing I was missing was technique, and during the pandemic I got to play with it more and figure out how to use the deep fryer effectively.

 

 

The trick with this recipe is having a good, crispy batter and real orange juice in the sauce. Those two things will make this recipe amazing! I played with several different recipes to find the right batter that makes a great crisp and mingles with the sauce without becoming soft and loosing the crisp. I also wanted light and fluffy batter, not something heavy or difficult to bite after cooking. 

 

 

Now, like I said, I have found the deep fryer works best for me. It’s the least amount of mess, and creates a nice crunchy shell on the juicy chicken bites. If you don’t have a deep fryer, that’s okay too. You can simply use heated oil on the stove top. It works well, and your chicken will still taste wonderful with the sauce.

 

 

Don’t forget to add some yummy veggies to your meal, and as always, serve it with some amazing rice! And enjoy your homemade Chinese food. You will love it!

 

 

 

Orange Chicken

 

 

The Chicken:

2 large chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

2 Tbs cornstarch

Black pepper to taste

 

The Batter:

¾ c cornstarch

¼ c flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp granulated sugar

½ tsp kosher salt

2/3 c ice-cold water

1 lg egg

Oil for frying

 

The Orange Sauce:

1 c fresh orange juice

½ c sugar

2 T rice vinegar

2 T soy sauce or lite soy sauce

¼ t ginger

¼ t garlic powder (or 2 cloves garlic finely minced)

½ t red pepper flakes

Orange zest from orange

1 T cornstarch

2 T water

 

In a bowl, mix together the chicken with the onion powder, garlic powder, cornstarch, and black pepper to taste. Set aside, and in a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients for the batter. In a measuring cup or small bowl, whisk together the water and the egg. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients for the batter and mix together. Finally, add the chicken to the batter and stir to combine.

Place the frying oil in the deep fryer and heat it to 350°F. Fry the chicken pieces in batches so they don’t stick together. Flip the chicken after a few minutes and let it cook for a few more minutes, until it has a nice golden color. Remove and place on a cooling rack lined with paper towel.

While cooking the batches of chicken, prepare the orange sauce. In a medium saucepan, mix together the orange juice, sugar, rice vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, red pepper flakes, and orange zest. Bring to a simmer, mix the cornstarch with 2 T water and add it to the sauce. Cook for a couple of minutes, until thickened.

Place the cooked chicken pieces in a bowl and pour the sauce over it to coat. You can also serve the sauce on the side for dipping. Serve with rice and possibly some pineapple slices, pepper and onion slices, or some broccoli.