Crispy fried chicken tossed in a bright, sweet and savory orange sauce! This quick and easy orange chicken recipe is a great main dish - ready in 30-minutes with simple ingredients. It's family-friendly, better-than-takeout, and perfect for busy weeknights!
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My version of orange chicken features bite-sized pieces of chicken thighs coated in cornstarch and fried until crispy. Then tossed in a savory and sweet citrus sauce!
This dish is packed with bright and bold flavors and is best served with white rice or fried rice and veggies!
Chef Andy Kho created this popular Chinese dish in 1987. It was inspired by the flavors and textures of another chicken dish from Hunan, China.
When I first had this dish, I instantly fell in love with the sweet sauce that coats the crispy chicken, so I had to create my own version!
What sets my recipe apart is that it avoids messy wet batter, uses only a small amount of oil for shallow frying instead of deep frying, and it's not spicy - perfect for kids!
Ingredients & Substitutes
Please scroll down to recipe card for exact measurements.
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs: or substitute with chicken breast and cook to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
- Cornstarch: or substitute with potato starch. Avoid tapioca starch as it'll cause the chicken pieces to stick together.
- Neutral Oil: like avocado oil, sunflower oil, grapeseed oil, peanut oil, vegetable oil, or canola oil. Avoid olive oil or any low-smoke point oil.
- Sesame Seeds: optional garnish - omit it if you're allergic.
- Orange Zest: optional garnish but recommended for more flavor.
- Green Onions: optional garnish.
Orange Sauce
- Freshly-Squeezed Orange Juice (no pulp): It's best to use fresh orange juice squeezed from oranges. If using store-bought orange juice, avoid concentrate orange juice and ones with pulp!
- White Vinegar: or substitute with rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar.
- Brown Sugar: I'm using light brown sugar but dark brown sugar will work too.
- Regular Soy Sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce.
- Garlic
- Ginger Powder: or substitute with finely minced ginger.
- Cornstarch: or substitute with potato starch or tapioca starch.
Variations
- Pork version - Replace the chicken with diced pork shoulder and cook to an internal temperature of 145 degrees F.
- Tofu version - Replace the chicken with diced extra-firm tofu.
- Shrimp version - Replace the chicken with jumbo shrimp.
- Spicy version - Mix in 1 teaspoon red chili flakes to the sauce.
- Gluten-free version - Replace the soy sauce with tamari sauce or coconut aminos.
Expert Tips
- Freshly-squeezed orange juice is recommended over store-bought for best flavor.
- Use chicken thighs for best taste as they have more fat and won't dry out in the cooking process.
- Don’t pat dry the chicken as moisture is needed for the cornstarch to stick.
- Evenly dice the chicken into 1.5-inch cubes, so they fry consistently.
- Use a heavy bottomed pan to fry the chicken to maintain oil temperature.
- Ensure the oil is hot enough before frying, around 325-350 F or insert a wooden chopstick into the oil and look for rapid bubbles.
- Fry the chicken in small batches and don't overcrowd or it can lead to soggy or uncooked chicken.
- Avoid moving the chicken as it fries, so it can develop a golden crust.
- Drain the fried chicken on a wire rack or paper-towel lined plate to remove excess oil, which leads to soggy chicken.
Instructions
Below are step-by-step instructions on how to make orange chicken:
- Make the sauce: In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients as listed above and mix well.
- Cube chicken: Dice the chicken thighs into 1.5-inch cubes. Don't pat the chicken dry as moisture is needed for the next step.
- Coat chicken in starch: Transfer the chicken pieces into a large mixing bowl. Add cornstarch and toss to coat evenly.
- Fry chicken: Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium-high heat. Fry the coated chicken in small batches in a single layer until golden and crispy on both sides, about 6-8 minutes.
- Drain chicken: Remove and transfer fried chicken to a wire rack or a paper-towel-lined plate to drain off excess oil, which can cause soggy chicken.
- Simmer sauce and add chicken: On medium-high heat, add the sauce and simmer to thicken, about 1 minute. Once thickened, add the chicken and toss to coat evenly. Garnish with orange zest, sesame seeds and green onions. Enjoy!
Storage & Reheating
- Orange chicken can last up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the fridge, once cooled. To enjoy, reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop until hot throughout.
- Orange chicken can be frozen for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe bag, once cooled. To enjoy, defrost overnight in the fridge and reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop until hot throughout.
Pairing Suggestions
Orange chicken serves well with:
- Starters: Egg rolls, Crab rangoon, Egg drop soup, or Hot and sour soup.
- Rice Dishes: White rice, Brown rice, or Fried rice.
- Noodle Dishes: Chow mein, Lo mein, Plain noodles, or Soup noodles.
- Vegetable Dishes: Chinese Garlic Bok Choy, Spicy Garlic Bok Choy, Chinese Garlic Yu Choy, Chinese Garlic Gai Lan, Garlic Green Beans or Stir-fried Snow Pea Leaves.
- Protein Dishes: Beef Vegetable Stir-Fry, Honey Walnut Shrimp, Bang Bang Shrimp, Egg Foo Young, Soy Garlic Tofu, and more!
FAQ
Orange chicken can be made up to 4 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge, once cooled. To reheat, microwave or reheat on the stovetop until hot throughout.
The fried chicken in orange chicken can be made in the air fryer: First evenly spray air fryer basket with neutral oil. Then place the coated chicken into the basket in a single layer, giving each piece enough space - you'll need to air fry in batches. Evenly spray oil over the chicken. Air fry at 400 F for 10-14 minutes until golden and crispy, no need to flip.
Soggy chicken can be caused by: not evenly coating the chicken in starch, the oil is not hot enough, overcrowding the pan, constantly moving the chicken around as it fries, or not draining off excess oil.
📖 Recipe
Quick & Easy Orange Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 lb skinless boneless chicken thighs
- ¼ cup cornstarch or potato starch
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil or any neutral oil
- ½ green onion finely chopped, optional garnish
- 1 tbsp orange zest grated, optional garnish
- 1 tsp sesame seeds toasted, optional garnish
Orange Chicken Sauce
- 1 cup orange juice freshly-squeezed, pulp removed (about 4-5 medium-sized oranges)
- 2 tablespoon white vinegar or rice vinegar / apple cider vinegar
- 6 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 tablespoon regular soy sauce or light soy sauce
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- ¼ teaspoon ginger powder or grated ginger
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch or potato starch / tapioca starch
- ½ tsp red chili flakes optional, if you prefer it spicy
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients as listed above and mix well.
- Dice the chicken thighs into 1.5-inch cubes. Don't pat the chicken dry as moisture is needed for the next step.
- Transfer the chicken pieces into a large mixing bowl. Add cornstarch and toss to coat evenly.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium-high heat. Fry the coated chicken in small batches in a single layer until golden and crispy on both sides, about 6-8 minutes.
- Remove and transfer fried chicken to a wire rack or a paper-towel-lined plate to drain off excess oil, which can cause soggy chicken.
- On medium-high heat, add the sauce and simmer to thicken, about 1 minute.
- Once thickened, add the chicken and toss to coat evenly. Garnish with orange zest, sesame seeds and green onions. Enjoy!
Sherry
This recipe is a keeper! My husband and I really enjoyed it! Will definitely make this again. I gave leftovers to my 94 year old Mother. She told me it was the best recipe with rice she ever had! She is not a rice lover. I did sauté some broccoli and carrots and put all in a bowl when serving! Delicious!!
christieathome
Thanks so much for making my recipe and for the kind review, Sherry! I am so happy to hear that your whole family enjoyed it including your 94 year old mother 🙂 I'm so thrilled that it was the best recipe with her rice she's ever had!
Angela
This orange chicken was absolutely amazing and easy to make! I’m so glad Instagram recommended me to you
christieathome
Thank you so much for making my recipe, Angela! I'm really happy to hear it worked out well for you 🙂
Tom
Excellent. I used breast tenders and cooked in a wok to your instructions. Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe.
christieathome
Thanks so much for making my recipe, Tom! I am really so glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Sarah
This is AMAZING!!! My kids and husband asked why I didn’t make more. ☺️
christieathome
Thank you so much for this kind review Sarah! I'm so happy you and the family liked it so much 🙂 Have a lovely night!
Aiman
Hi,
Can I use white sugar instead of brown? Does it have any differences in taste for both?
Aiman
Hi,
Can I use white sugar instead of brown sugar? Will it change the taste in anyway if so?
christieathome
Hi Aiman, yes white sugar will work too. It shouldn't change the taste by too much.
Lucky
Absolutely lovely! Wasn't sure what white vinegar to use so used Apple Cider vinegar and it turned out great. Deffo one we will keep in our meal rotation. Thank you for sharing.
christieathome
Thanks so much for making my recipe, Lucky! Appreciate the kind review! Glad you enjoyed it. As for the white vinegar, it's just plain regular white vinegar but happy to hear that Apple Cider vinegar worked well too!
Mahira
Hi! Doe this recipe not require any salt?
Mahira
Does**
christieathome
Hi Mahira! No salt is required as the soy sauce is quite salty enough for the dish! If you'd like, you may season the thighs with 1/2 tsp salt but I don't find it necessary for taste.
Mahira
Thank you for your response! One more thing- can I substitute brown sugar with regular white sugar?
Jeremy
Wonderful! My Taiwanese wife is loving these dishes I'm creating. I used almost 1.5 pounds of chicken and had enough sauce. Your recipes are the best. And, I love using corn starch to crisp the chicken.
christieathome
That's so amazing to hear, Jeremy! I'm really glad she is loving the dishes. Thank you so much for making my recipe and have a great day! - Christie
Becca
Very delicious! The texture was perfect, no need to go out when you can simply make this at home (and it’s healthier too)!!!
christieathome
Thanks so much for making my recipe, Becca! I'm so glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Dena
This was a wonderful recipe. The taste was fantastic. We enjoyed it very much. I haven’t been so excited about a recipe on a long time. Thank you!
Dena
christieathome
Thanks so much for making my recipe, Dena! I'm so glad you enjoyed my orange chicken! 🙂
Keisha-gaye
Can the chicken be done in the oven instead
christieathome
Yes, I would recommend spraying some oil on your baking tray and over your chicken. To bake, I would recommend baking at 375 degrees for 10 minutes, then move the top middle oven rack and broil until crispy for 2-3 minutes but monitor it so it doesn't burn. Good luck!
Sheena
Another great recipe! I made this last night and it will be added to our rotation of Christie at home recipes in our household.
We do like a slighter kick, so I will add the pepper flakes as suggestion. I agree the orange juice from oranges is the way to go. It was suggested to add orange zest to give more orange zing!
I appreciate how approachable all these recipes are and have had a lot of fun making dishes we love at home that taste better!
christieathome
Hi Sheena! Thank you so much for making so many of my recipes! I truly appreciate the support and the kind words! I'm also so glad you're enjoying them 🙂 Yes fresh orange juice really is the way to go and feel free to add more chili flakes if you like a stronger kick. Have a lovely day! - Christie
Steph S
Wow- so delicious! Perfectly crispy chicken! Not too sweet, amazing orange flavor. Definitely going into my recipe rotation.
christieathome
Thank you so much for making my recipe and for sharing this very kind review Steph! I am so glad you enjoyed it 🙂 Have a lovely day!
Kayune
Just made this today for dinner in the air fryer! It was so good!! Thank you for such an easy recipe. I don't live in America anymore and I was craving orange chicken so I'm glad I can make it at home now! 🙂
christieathome
Thank you so much for making my recipe Kayune! I am so glad I could share this recipe with you so you can now make it in the comfort of your own home! Have a great day! - Christie
Grammy Pammy
Love this recipe. Next time I will add red pepper flakes for a little more kick for the hubby. Thank you for an easy healthier version recipe. Now to find a good easy spring roll recipe and good rice paper. Any suggestions?
christieathome
Thank you so much! I am so glad you enjoyed your and your husband enjoyed it! I'm actually working on an easy spring roll recipe so stay tuned or subscribe to my newsletter so you can know when it comes out 🙂