Take-out is great and all, but you can’t beat a home-cooked meal! This tangy and zesty orange chicken is full of flavor and super easy to make for yourself or your friends.
Ingredients:
Chicken:
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized pieces
- 3 eggs whisked
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- 1/3 cup flour
- Salt
- Oil for frying
Orange Chicken Sauce:
- 1 cup orange juice
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons rice or white vinegar
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- ¼ teaspoon ginger
- ¼ teaspoon garlic or 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon red chili flakes
- Zest from 1 orange
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Directions:
Orange Sauce:
- In a medium-sized pot, add the orange juice, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and red chili flakes. Heat for three minutes.
- In a bowl, whisk 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water to make a paste, add to the orange sauce and whisk. Continue to cook until the mixture begins to thicken. Once the mixture is thickened, remove from heat and add the orange zest.
Chicken:
- Put flour and cornstarch in a dish. Add a pinch of salt and stir.
- Whisk eggs in a shallow dish.
- Dip the chicken pieces into the egg mixture and then the flour mixture. Place on a plate.
- Heat 2-3 inches of oil in a pot over medium-high heat. Use a thermometer and wait for it to reach 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Cook several pieces at a time. Cook for 2-3 minutes, turning often until golden brown. Place chicken on a paper-towel lined plate. Repeat until all chicken is cooked.
- Toss chicken with the orange sauce. You can save some of the orange sauce to put on rice. Serve it with a sprinkle of green onion and orange zest if desired.
Brooklynn Jolley can be reached at [email protected]