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Orange Chicken

Chicken is fried in tempura batter and then tossed in a homemade sticky orange sauce to make for a yummy Chinese dish
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time45 minutes
Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

For the orange sauce:

  • 3 ounces rice wine vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • ½ cup oyster sauce
  • ½ cup white sugar
  • 3 ounces fresh orange juice
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
  • 1½ teaspoons sweet paprika
  • 1 drop red food coloring optional
  • 1 teaspoon orange zest

For the tempura chicken:

  • 1 quart vegetable or canola oil (for frying)
  • 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs
  • salt and pepper
  • 2½ cups tempura flour

For assembly:

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
  • 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
  • 1½ teaspoon minced garlic
  • ½ yellow onion cut into a large dice
  • 3 green onions sliced
  • orange zest (for garnish)

Instructions

For the orange sauce:

  • Whisk rice wine vinegar and cornstarch together to make a slurry. Place into a medium sauce pan. Add oyster sauce, sugar, orange juice, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, paprika, and food coloring. Whisk together. Place over medium heat, whisking occasionally. Once mixture begins to bubble, reduce to medium-low and continue to cook for 5 more minutes. Remove from heat and add orange zest. Let cool while we make the chicken.

For the tempura chicken:

  • Add 1 quart of vegetable oil to a Dutch oven. Heat over medium heat until oil reaches 375 degrees.
  • Cut chicken thighs into 1-inch pieces. Pat dry and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Place in shallow dish and sprinkle with 1 cup of tempura flour. Toss chicken in flour to cover it completely.
  • In a separate medium bowl, add remaining 1½ cups of tempura flour and mix with 1 cup of cold water. The consistency should be similar to pancake batter. Set aside.
  • Once the oil is hot enough, shake excess flour off of chicken and dip into batter one at a time. Shake off excess batter and gently lower into hot oil. Repeat with about ⅓ of the chicken pieces. Cook for 6-8 minutes or until chicken turns golden brown. Try to keep the oil between 350 and 375 degrees so that the chicken gets crispy. Remove chicken from the hot oil and drain on paper towels. Let oil temperature rise back up to 375 degrees. Repeat frying process in two more batches or until all the chicken is fried.

For assembly:

  • Heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large skillet or braising dish. Heat oil over medium-high. Once the oil is hot, add ginger, garlic, and fried chicken pieces. Toss together for 30 seconds. Add diced onion, sliced green onions, and orange sauce. Toss together until chicken is completely coated and sauce is heated through, about 2 minutes.
  • Serve immediately with broccoli and steamed rice.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Food Network