Orange Chicken (2)

Going out with family for dinner is definitely fun, but there is still something very comforting about eating a delicious homemade dinner cooked with love. Often I crave for those awesome dishes from my favorite restaurants but don’t feel like leaving the house. Though takeouts and food delivered to your door steps are always an option but nothing beats a home cooked meal especially when it is better than take out and also saves you some bucks so that you could go out and pamper yourself on your next shopping trip. 🙂 🙂

So here is my tried and tested recipe for orange chicken which has been improvised over the years that will not only keep the whole family happy but also transform your dining room into their favorite Chinese food restaurant!Orange Chicken (3)

Ingredients:

Serves 4

  • 1 LB chicken breast cut into bite size cubes
  • 1/2 tablespoon of chopped garlic
  • 1/2 tablespoon of chopped ginger
  • 2 teaspoons of orange zest
  • 4 dried red chilli cut into half and seeds removed
  • 2.5 cups of corn oil to fry

Mixture (Breading) for frying Chicken :

  • 3/4 cup of all purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup of cornstarch
  • 1/2 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon of crushed black pepper
  • 2 eggs

Orange Chicken Sauce:

  • 1.5 cups of orange juice
  • 1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine(Optional)
  • 2 teaspoons of sesame seed oil
  • 2.5 tablespoons of brown sugar(you can replace it with normal sugar or honey)
  • 2 teaspoons of seasoned rice vinegar( or normal vinegar if you don’t have rice vinegar)
  • 1.5 tablespoons of  soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with 1 teaspoon of cold water

Garnishing

  • Chopped Green onions
  • Sesame seeds

Steps:

1.The key to any Chinese dish is the preparation. Have all your ingredients ready to go.The first step is to make the egg wash. In a medium bowl take two eggs and whisk to make the egg wash.The egg wash is a key part of making orange chicken.  It binds the flour mixture onto the bite size chicken pieces and also enhances the flavor of chicken.Orange Chicken (11)2. In another bowl mix together your flour, salt, pepper and corn starch to make the breading for chicken pieces.

Orange Chicken (7)3. Next step is to  slice your chicken into bite size pieces. Slicing your chicken breast into uniform bite size pieces allows them to fry evenly. Now dip the chicken pieces into the egg wash, coat properly Orange Chicken (14)4.Roll the egg coated chicken pieces  in the flour mixture. Make sure that each chicken piece is coated properlyOrange Chicken (17)5.Now heat the corn oil in a wok or pan and fry your chicken pieces until they are golden brown and crispy. Place the fried chicken on a paper napkin to drain the excess oil.Orange Chicken (10)

6.To make the orange sauce first heat olive oil in a pan. Add finely chopped ginger and garlic and sauté . Add dry red chillies and sauté

Orange Chicken (5)

 

7. Now add orange zest. Grate the outer skin of an orange to get the orange zest. Make sure you do not grate the white part below the skin as that will make your dish bitter.Orange Chicken (15)

8. Add orange juice to the pan and mix Orange Chicken (9)

  1. Now gently add in soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil and rice wine to the sauce. You can omit rice wine if you do not have it.Orange Chicken (1)
  2. Stir in the brown sugar .Orange Chicken (8)
  3. Now mix cornstarch  in cold water and add to the orange sauce. Keep stirring till the sauce thickens. Then add your fried chicken to the sauce and continue cooking till the sauce thickens more and forms a glaze around the chicken pieces.Orange Chicken (13)
  4. Pour into a bowl and garnish with chopped green onions and sesame seeds. Serve hot with a steamed or fried rice.Orange Chicken (4)

 

Enjoy this restaurant style orange chicken in the comforts of your home !! Orange Chicken is one of my favorite take out food, What is your favorite Chinese food ?

 

Stay Cheerful .. Stay Flavorful !!