Easy Orange Chicken Recipe

orange chicken on a bed of rice on a green platter

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Easy Orange Chicken Recipe

This easy orange chicken recipe is perfect for weeknight eating.

Prep Time15

Cook Time15

Course: dinner, Main Course

Keyword: easy orange chicken recipe, orange chicken

Servings:

Calories: 585kcal

Author: Teri Turner

Ingredients

Sauce

1 ½ cup orange juice freshly squeezed
3 tablespoons ketchup
3 tablespoons unsweetened rice vinegar
3 tablespoons coconut aminos
1 ½ teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 clove garlic pressed or grated
2 teaspoons arrowroot powder

Chicken

2 large eggs
1 ½ cups all-purpose or gluten-free all-purpose flour such as Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 or Dove’s Free gluten free flour
Salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 ½ pounds skinless boneless chicken breasts or chicken tenders, cut into 1 ½-2-inch chunks
8 tablespoons light olive oil divided
3-4 scallions thinly sliced, to garnish
Sesame seeds to garnish

Instructions

In a saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the orange juice, ketchup, rice vinegar, coconut aminos, sesame oil, and garlic and bring to a gentle boil. While the sauce is heating up, stir the arrowroot powder with one tablespoon of cold water. Once the sauce has reached a boil, whisk in the arrowroot slurry to combine. The sauce should thicken almost immediately. Set aside
Season the chicken chunks with 1 teaspoon salt.
In a shallow dish, beat the eggs with a splash of water.
In a second shallow bowl, add the flour, 2 teaspoons salt, and pepper and mix to combine.
Dip a couple of chicken chunks in the egg mixture with one hand and allow the excess egg to drip off then transfer to the bowl with the flour mixture and with your dry hand coat the chunks then set aside on a large plate or baking sheet. Repeat with all the remaining chicken.
In a large nonstick pan, heat 4 tablespoons of oil over high heat until hot but not smoking. You can check to see if the oil is hot enough by sprinkling a little of the flour into the pan. If it bubbles up vigorously, it is ready. Reduce the heat to medium and add a third of the chicken, make sure not to over-crowd the pan. Some gluten-free flours can burn easily so keep an eye on the chicken and keep toggling the heat between medium-low and medium. Cook chicken pieces for a total of 4-5 minutes, turning halfway through cooking time, until golden brown and cooked through. Note that the time can vary based on your pan and the heat of your stovetop.
Transfer fried chicken pieces to a tea towel-lined plate to drain. Add more olive oil as needed and if the oil gets too cloudy, wipe out the pan with a paper towel and add clean oil between batches.
As the chicken nearly finished cooking, reheat the sauce until warm.
Add the chicken to a large bowl and pour ¾ to 1 cup of the sauce and toss to coat. Serve on a platter garnished with sesame seeds and scallions and the remaining sauce in a small bowl for serving. Feel free to serve over a bed of white rice or on their own. So delicious!

Notes

Cook’s note: If you have particularly large chicken breasts, cut the thickest part in half horizontally before cutting into chunks, to maintain size consistency for the pieces.

Nutrition