3 Ingredient Orange Chicken

Orange chicken is a simple and lightly pan fried chicken coated in a nice caramelized orange tangy sauce. Its origins are actually in America since it’s an Americanized Chinese dish. Orange chicken is not commonly found in china but it is inspired by other Chinese dishes that also have a sweet and sour sauce glaze. However you want to make it, if you have this simple and delicious dish, you’ll instantly get addicted. 

Home Grown Oranges Taste Better

I never had orange chicken until just recently. I mean, as a Chinese girl my idea of authentic Chinese food is always the more home cooked steamed dishes. But then there’s my husband with his obsession with sauces. Anything saucy, you can be sure he’ll want me to make it. And sure enough, orange chicken was at the top of the list. I figured well, if my husband were to eat orange chicken, I at least want him to eat a healthier version that I make. And so, I decided, rather than using store-bought orange juice, I’d instead use the home grown oranges that my mother in law brought me from Fresno. I blended the orange juice and used a sieve to remove the pulp from the oranges and viola! Homemade orange juice with no added sugar! 

I made this recipe similar to the concept of my sweet and sour pork by adding a hint of vinegar. What I love most about this dish is that it is fairly healthy and easy to make! You can even make a simple version with three ingredients: orange juice, vinegar, and chicken thighs! The fresh squeezed orange juice didn’t take me much time to make (less than 10 mins!) and you’ll find that this tangy and sweet sauce is perfect with a bowl of hot steaming rice. The combination of savory juicy chicken thighs and sweet and citrusy orange sauce was indeed a dynamic combination. This one quickly became a favorite in the household right now, I hope you and your loved ones enjoy this recipe too! 

Ingredients

• ¾ cup of corn starch
• 1 pack of chicken thighs
• ⅓ tsp salt 
• ¼ tsp of pepper
• ½ siu hing (optional)
• 2 tbsp black vinegar
• ½ -1 tbsp rock sugar (depending on your preference for sweetness)
• ½ cup of water
• ¾ cup of orange juice (1-2 oranges for fresh orange juice)
• 1 tbsp oil

Instructions

1. Rinse and pat down chicken thighs dry. Slice chicken thighs into 1/2 inch pieces. Put cornstarch in a bowl and start coating chicken thighs with corn starch. Dust off excess corn starch by shaking chicken thighs. 
2. If you’re using fresh oranges, peel the skin of the oranges and discard. In a blender, blend oranges until oranges are completely broken down. Use a sieve with a bowl underneath and filter out orange pulp and catch juice in the bowl. 
3. Heat a wok on medium heat until warm. Add 1 tbsp of oil and once oil starts glistening, pan fry chicken thigh pieces for a few minutes. Remove chicken from the wok once finished. 
4. Turn the heat down to low and add in orange juice, vinegar, water, and rock sugar. Wait for the sauce to simmer and thicken to desired consistency. Once sauce has thickened and is boiling, add in chicken thighs and lightly toss with wok. 
5. Coat chicken in sauce for just a minute and take it off the heat and serve. Garnish with some fresh orange wedges and enjoy!

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