Easy Baked Orange Chicken is better than take-out! Tender chicken coated in a homemade orange sauce is an easy dinner you can make whenever you get a craving for take-out.
I love Orange Chicken – whether it’s from the fast food place or a fancy restaurant. The sweet and tart orange sauce is so good on everything! When I get a craving for that flavorful recipe, I make this baked orange chicken. It’s just as good as Panda Express Orange Chicken!
With this easy orange chicken recipe, you get crispy coated chicken with the sweet and salty citrus sauce just like your favorite take-out but without all of the fat from deep-frying. Baking the chicken is the best way to lighten it up without sacrificing any of the flavor.
I’m showing you how to make orange chicken that is so good you’ll skip the take-out! Serve it over rice with some eggrolls on the side for a dinner your family will love.
Ingredient Notes
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized pieces – you can also use chicken thighs.
- The coating mixture has salt and pepper and breadcrumbs.
- Homemade orange sauce ingredients: honey, low sodium soy sauce, minced garlic and ginger, orange zest, orange juice, red pepper flakes, and cornstarch.
How to Make Orange Chicken Sauce
- To bread the chicken, stir together the coating ingredients and add with the chicken bites to a large bag. Seal and shake it to coat the chicken.
- It’s important to bake the chicken at a hight temperature to sear in the flavor and make it crunchy.
- Make the sauce by boiling the ingredients in a saucepan. Use a cornstarch slurry (a mixture of cornstarch and cold water) to thicken it once it boils.
- Once the sauce is thick, add the cooked chicken and stir to coat it evenly in the sauce. Make an orange chicken bowl with rice and garnish it with green onions and sesame seeds.
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Storage
Any leftovers will keep in the refrigerator for three to four days. The breading will soak up the sauce and won’t be as crispy, but it will still taste delicious.
Orange Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 cup water
- 2 tablespoons cold water
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
- ⅓ cup honey
- ½ cup no pulp store bought orange juice
- 1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- Zest from one small orange
- ½ teaspoon fresh ginger minced
- ⅛ teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 green onions sliced using only the green parts
Instructions
- Slice chicken breasts into bite sized pieces. Pre-heat oven to 400°F. Spray a large cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
- Combine breadcrumbs, salt and pepper in a gallon sized plastic resealable bag. Add chicken and then shake well and make sure all chicken is coated. Place the coated chicken pieces on the cookie sheet in a single layer.
- Bake about 20 minutes until chicken is cooked through. Halfway through cookie flip the pieces of chicken.
- While chicken is cooking, make the sauce. Add orange juice, water, soy sauce, honey, orange zest, garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes in a medium saucepan. On medium heat whisk ingredients until combined. Bring mixture to a boil. Add the green onions and taste. Not sweet enough, add a small amount of honey, too sweet, add a little soy sauce. Not spicy enough, add a little more of the red pepper flake. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Stir together the cold water and cornstarch and make sure it is smooth and all lumps are gone. Pour the cornstarch slurry into the boiling sauce while whisking. Cook until the sauce thickens. This will happen very quickly. Take off the heat.
- Add the cooked chicken into the sauce and stir to make sure it is fully coated. Serve over hot rice. Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.
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I made your orange chicken a few days ago and it was a big hit! The chicken was crispy when it came out of the oven and the sauce was quick and easy to make. I hope you saw the email I sent your wife about the actual writing of the recipe!
Glad you like the recipe! I forwarded your comment about the email 🙂
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