Easy Orange Chicken Recipe
Orange chicken is a staple of Chinese-American cuisine that has been a hit for decades. It’s one of those dishes that keeps you coming back for another bite, and while you might think it’s a treat when you’re ordering in, it’s actually really easy to make this dish at home. This sweet, tangy, and savory dish is perfect for those who love Asian flavors and are looking for an easy weeknight dinner option.
6-Ingredient Sauce
The sauce for this orange chicken is made with just six ingredients, making it quick and simple to prepare, especially since one of those ingredients is a sauce shortcut – orange marmalade. Simply simmer marmalade with soy sauce, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, some grated fresh ginger, and a sprinkling of red pepper flakes and you’ll have a delicious sauce that perfectly balances sweet and savory flavors.
Air Fryer or Oven
While you can make this orange chicken in the oven (see oven directions below), if you have an air fryer, you’ll love this recipe even more. The air fryer gives the chicken a crispy texture, similar to that of traditional deep-frying, but with less oil and fewer calories. Simply toss the chicken pieces in a mixture of panko breadcrumbs and flour, place them in the air fryer, spritz well with oil and cook for about 10 to 12 minutes. The result is delicious, juicy chicken with a crispy exterior that’s perfect for soaking up the orange sauce.
How to Serve
This orange chicken is perfect served over a bed of steamed rice, with a side of stir-fried vegetables. It also makes a great addition to a Chinese-style feast, along with dishes like fried rice and egg rolls. You can even add a sprinkle of green onions or sesame seeds on top for a pop of color and extra flavor. No matter how you serve it, this orange chicken is sure to be a hit!
There are no oven baking instructions. At what temperature and for how long do you bake the chicken in the oven? Thanks!
There are two tabs, or a drop down box on mobile devices, for Air Fryer and Stovetop/Oven versions of the recipes. Just click on the stovetop tab for the oven directions.
I made this tonight for the family and they LOVED IT!!!!
A family favorite. I cut back just a bit on the sesame oil the second time I made it and it was perfect!
I made this for dinner last night and it was a hit in my family. Better than our favorite restaurant where we get it. It is going to be my new go-to impressor. Thanks for the recipe! 🙂
I’m about to make your “air fry” recipe, but one question— Did you really mean, ‘Cut the chicken into 1/2 inch pieces’? That seems to me to be really small.
You will want to cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
This was PERFECT! My chicken was not as brown as I thought it would be out of the air fryer. But when it went in the sauce it was beautiful! The sauce needed no tweaking. Make it! It is delicious!
Meredith, another winner from you!!!
Skipped a big step – made the sauce exactly as written except I used the Heartland Fresh Chicken Fried Chicken. Air fried several of the breasts, when done, we prepared them 2 ways. We left some whole breasts and some I cut into nuggets. Whole breasts just had sauce drizzled on it but the nuggets I put in a bowl and tossed & coated them. I have to say either way was just delicious. Already planning on having this sauce with tossed grilled shrimp or on the Faroe Island salmon. Outstanding!
Looks like chicken should be cut into 1 1/2” pieces.
You’ll want to cut them into 1/2-inch to 1-inch bite sized pieces.
yummy and delicious
Made this last night. Loved the sauce and will use it again, but will double it. I also added chunks of sautéed onion and green and red pepper. The timing for the chicken was good but we both found the texture somewhat off-putting. If I were to do it again, I would either switch to regular breadcrumbs instead of panko or leave them off altogether and dredge in cornstarch, egg and cornstarch again. I have done that method many times and much prefer the texture.
Panko breadcrumbs are used to keep the chicken pieces crispy after you add the sauce, but you certainly can try regular breadcrumbs if you prefer it less crispy.
Can you use orange juice rather than marmalade ? Hate marmalade
Hi Donna. You won’t actually taste the marmalade once it’s mixed with the Hoisin and soy sauce, ginger, etc.. and it’s really needed for it’s consistency. Orange juice would dilute the sauce in the same quantities. You could try adding a little orange juice to thin the other ingredients a little, but it wouldn’t add enough orange flavor. You could try orange preserves instead of marmalade, or change the flavor profile and go with apricot preserves.