Orange chicken coats crisp thigh pieces with a sweet orange, ginger and soy glaze. The rice is already cooked before serving, and its listed amount is shared across four bowls.
Keep the chicken dusting starch separate from the sauce slurry. They have different jobs, and adding them all to one bowl changes both the coating and the glaze.
On This Page
Why This Orange Chicken Works
A light starch dusting helps the batter cling to the chicken. Small uncrowded frying loads keep pieces separate and help the coating set.
The sauce thickens separately before it meets the chicken. Tossing near serving preserves more contrast between the crisp coating and the sticky glaze.
Ingredients for Orange Chicken
Chicken and coating
- 2 pounds fully thawed boneless skinless chicken thighs (1-inch pieces)
- 90 grams all-purpose flour
- 1 medium egg
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 90 milliliters cold water
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch (Chicken dusting)
- 120 milliliters vegetable oil (Shallow frying, not all absorbed)
Orange sauce
- 3/4 cup orange juice
- 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
- 6 tablespoons superfine sugar
- 5 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch (Sauce slurry)
- 3 tablespoons cold water (Sauce slurry)
Serving
- 2 cups hot cooked rice (Ready-to-eat packaged rice heated as directed)
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Chicken: Cut thawed thighs into similar 1 inch pieces.
Batter water: The milliliter water measure belongs with flour and egg, not the sauce slurry.
Starch: Two tablespoons dust chicken; the separate tablespoon thickens sauce.
Orange: Juice and fine zest both go into the sauce.
Rice: Use two cups cooked rice, not two cups dry rice.
How to Make Orange Chicken
- Prepare bowls. Whisk flour, egg, garlic salt, salt, pepper and the 90 milliliters cold water into batter. Separately combine sauce ingredients except its starch and water. Mix those two slurry ingredients in another small bowl.
- Fry chicken. Dust chicken with its 2 tablespoons starch and fold into batter. Heat the measured frying oil in a stable heavy skillet to about 350 degrees F. Shallow fry in loose loads, turning carefully, about 6 to 8 minutes per load as needed to reach 165 degrees F. Keep finished pieces hot on a clean rack.
- Thicken sauce. Simmer the orange sauce mixture in a saucepan for about 3 minutes. Rewhisk its slurry, add while stirring and simmer 2 minutes until glossy. Avoid a hard reduction that scorches the sugar.
- Serve. Heat the packaged cooked rice as directed. Toss cooked chicken with the glaze and divide over the two cups rice in four bowls, sharing sesame seeds. Cool used oil safely before moving it.
Serving the Glazed Chicken
Rice is already included in the four portions. For another fruit based glaze, try pineapple teriyaki chicken.
For a different quick sauce style meal, beef and broccoli uses sliced steak and vegetables. Those are separate dinner options.
Storage and Reheating
Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in shallow containers for up to 3 days at 40 degrees F or below. Store rice promptly rather than leaving the serving pot warm on the counter.
Freeze portions up to 2 months for quality, expecting softer coating. Thaw refrigerated and reheat to 165 degrees F, adding a little water to loosen glaze without burning it.
Tips and Substitutions
- Keep pieces even. Large pieces can stay raw inside a browned coating.
- Separate slurry. Only the sauce starch joins its three tablespoons water.
- Watch the oil. Keep water away from hot oil and do not leave frying unattended.
- Check allergens. Egg, wheat, soy and sesame are present or likely; read sauce labels.
- Check poultry. Every load needs 165 degrees F. Follow the FDA safe food handling guide.
Orange Chicken FAQs
Is the rice measured dry?
No, two cups refers to cooked rice. Heat it according to its package directions.
Does all starch go in sauce?
No, the two tablespoon portion dusts the chicken. Only the separate tablespoon goes into the sauce slurry.
Why does coating soften?
Glaze adds moisture. Toss just before serving and avoid holding covered for a long time.
Is all frying oil absorbed?
No, some remains in the skillet. The listed oil quantity is a cooking measure, not an absorbed nutrition claim.
Can I skip checking the chicken?
A browned coating does not prove the center is cooked. Check several larger pieces with a thermometer.
Recipe attribution: adapted from Nicky Corbishley’s Orange Chicken at Nicky’s Kitchen Sanctuary, with measured chicken weight, citrus quantities and revised cooking checks.
Orange Chicken Recipe with a Fresh Orange Glaze Sauce
Equipment
- Heavy skillet
- Saucepan
- Clean rack
- Oil thermometer
- Food thermometer
Ingredients
Chicken and coating
- 2 pounds fully thawed boneless skinless chicken thighs 1-inch pieces
- 90 grams all-purpose flour
- 1 medium egg
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 90 milliliters cold water
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch Chicken dusting
- 120 milliliters vegetable oil Shallow frying, not all absorbed
Orange sauce
- 3/4 cup orange juice
- 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
- 6 tablespoons superfine sugar
- 5 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch Sauce slurry
- 3 tablespoons cold water Sauce slurry
Serving
- 2 cups hot cooked rice Ready-to-eat packaged rice heated as directed
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- Mix flour batter with egg, seasonings and 90 milliliters water. Keep sauce and its separate starch slurry in clean bowls.
- Dust chicken with 2 tablespoons starch, coat in batter and shallow fry loose loads near 350 degrees F to 165 degrees F centers.
- Simmer orange sauce, rewhisk its separate slurry and cook 2 minutes after adding until glossy.
- Toss cooked chicken in glaze and share over two cups hot cooked rice in four bowls. Add sesame.
