The Chinese or lunar New Year is quickly approaching and I have been thinking about Chinese cuisine a lot. The word for oranges in Chinese is similar to the word for wealth and thus oranges are considered lucky for the New Year, which is great since orange chicken is one of my favourite dishes. Normally takeout orange chicken is battered and fried in a lot of oil but I prefer this lighter and healthier version where the chicken is simply sauteed and then tossed in a super tasty orange sauce! One of the best things about this recipe is that it takes less time to make than it takes to steam the rice, less than 20 minutes!
So nice and light, healthy and tasty!
Serve over steamed rice, quino or noodles and toss with some steamed vegetables like broccoli, peppers, peas, etc for a complete meal.
20 Minute Light Orange Chicken
A quick, easy, light and tasty Chinese orange chicken dish that is way better than takeout!
ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 pound boneless and skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1/3 cup orange juice
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon chill sauce such as sambal oelek or sriracha
- 1 tablespoon orange zest, grated
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 1 teaspoon ginger, grated
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/4 cup green onion, sliced (optional)
directions
- Heat the oil in a pan over medium-high heat, add the chicken and cook until cooked through, about 2-4 minutes per side.
- Add the mixture of the orange juice, honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, chill sauce, garlic, ginger and the mixture of the water and the corn starch, toss to coat and cook until the sauce thickens, about a minute.
- Remove from heat and serve garnished with sliced green onions.
Option: Add some vegetables to the mix such as broccoli, peas, peppers, etc.
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Holly says
January 20, 2012 at 11:59 pmAny chance of seeing a Mongolian Beef recipe this next week?
Jennifer says
January 21, 2012 at 12:09 amomg that looks so yummy! 😀
Claudia says
January 21, 2012 at 1:00 amSaving this – much prefer this version than the battered ones – cannot even taste the orange in the chicken sometimes!
Jess @ Sugar High says
January 21, 2012 at 1:29 amLove that you kept it simple and healthy by not frying. Looks delicious!
Becki's Whole Life says
January 21, 2012 at 2:14 amI love the orange flavor with the spicy peppers. This looks wonderful and a great option for Chinese New Year!
Joy says
January 21, 2012 at 3:27 amThe dish looks great.
Drifter says
January 21, 2012 at 4:58 amAny eggplant recipe to share?
Shohag B. says
January 21, 2012 at 8:23 ami luv this item ! thanks :X
Joanne says
January 21, 2012 at 11:31 amI love that this has fresh orange juice in it and is NOT deep fried! This is the perfect way to get your Chinese food fix without feeling like you've been run over by a truck.
NotesFromAbroad says
January 21, 2012 at 1:11 pmI miss good Chinese food , I will definitely try this recipe as soon as I start cooking again.
It is too hot to cook at this time 🙂
poor me lol
besitos, C
Momographica says
January 21, 2012 at 1:17 pmThis looks fantastic! I tried duck with orange before but never chicken. Thank you for the yummy recipe!
Anonymous says
January 21, 2012 at 1:42 pmdo you ever use tahini? when your recipe calls for both honey and sesame oil, perhaps this is a spot for it.
carole s.
Kathleen Richardson says
January 21, 2012 at 3:14 pmLove chicken. Love orange. Good blog entry, Kevin, and seeing it makes me want to start cooking right now!
India's no.1 blog says
January 21, 2012 at 5:55 pmYummy yummy yummy 🙂
Amy Tsung says
January 21, 2012 at 7:41 pmWow, that looks so good!
almostveg says
January 21, 2012 at 8:24 pmlooks great – am curious to know why you soaked the chilies. In India we soak them before grinding to a paste, but haven't seen it used in this kind of application.
LAURA says
January 21, 2012 at 9:06 pmCiao, che bello e particolare il tuo blog, mi piace!!!
Se ti fa piacere passa a trovarmi.
A presto.
wheatgerm says
January 21, 2012 at 10:00 pmhmmm that looks tasty
cooking lady says
January 22, 2012 at 4:58 amWow this looks really good. And the photo is just fantastic
Ferdinand says
January 22, 2012 at 5:06 amLooks delicious and healty
Anonymous says
January 22, 2012 at 7:05 am5 minute prep? You're fast!
Kevin says
January 22, 2012 at 2:50 pmAnonymous: I tend to walk into the kitchen, turn the stove on, place the oil in the pan and then I start cut the chicken, place it in the pan and while it cooks I move onto the garlic, onions, etc.
almostveg: I just wanted to soften them up a bit.
Anonymous: Using tahini in a dish likes this is an interesting idea. I had not thought about using tahini like that.
Anonymous says
January 23, 2012 at 8:09 amHi, Kevin! tahini is common here in greece, whereas sesame oil's an expensive import. so i've often used the oil the settles on top of the seed pulp in a jar of tahini rather than spend for 'sesame oil'.
carole s.
Liz says
January 23, 2012 at 11:11 amEverything seems so delicious!
I'll follow your adventures 😉
Karina says
January 23, 2012 at 5:38 pmThis looks amazing and so much better than the Orange Chicken I usually order. 🙂
Thanks for posting this, love your recipes!
Barracuda says
January 24, 2012 at 5:46 pmThat looks delitions! Thank you for posting.
Justin Cullen says
January 25, 2012 at 9:34 amIt looks absolutely delicious!!!
Fruit Carving says
January 25, 2012 at 6:39 pmVery lovely presentation, looks delicious! I will try this recipe.
Nicole says
March 1, 2012 at 3:33 pmThis was delicious!
Anonymous says
March 6, 2012 at 12:22 amLooks delicious , and I agree prefer unbattered as well !
Anonymous says
April 2, 2013 at 2:24 pmThis was great! Much better than takeout. Thanks for the recipe. I will definitely make it again.
Jeanette says
January 28, 2014 at 3:28 pmLove your lightened up version of orange chicken Kevin – yes oranges are good luck for Chinese New Year! The guy at our local Asian grocery store always has special oranges for the New Year.
vanillasugarblog says
January 29, 2014 at 12:16 amKevin I just saw a recipe for meyer lemon fried chicken!
Doesn't that sound good? Where did I see it? I can't remember, but I saved it for my friday link roundup.
kevin says
January 29, 2014 at 12:22 amvanillasugarblog: That does sound good!
Atroub says
January 29, 2014 at 1:03 amI'm guessing the zest is for garnish instead of in the sauce? Just premade the sauce (using tangerines since that's what I have on hand) & all I can say is WOW, delicious! Thank you for this recipe, it's a keeper!
kevin says
January 29, 2014 at 2:01 amAtroub: I place finely grated zest in the sauce and then some larger pieces of zest go on for garnish.
Tieghan says
January 29, 2014 at 4:42 amOrange chicken is always so good. Your version could not look better! I cannot wait to give it a try! 🙂
avidalector says
January 30, 2014 at 12:39 amI'm wondering if the "3 Tablespoons of soy sauce" is meant to be "3 TEAspoons"? I made this for dinner tonight and found the sauce to be very dark in color and the orange flavor to be mildly overpowered. Regardless, I found it to be delicious.
kevin says
February 1, 2014 at 5:25 pmavidalector: 3 tablespoons of soy sauce is correct. Did you use a dark soy sauce or a regular one. There are dark and light soy sauces in Chinese cuisine and the dark soy sauce would give you a darker sauce.
What a Dish! says
February 11, 2014 at 7:03 pmMade this for dinner tonight and really enjoyed. I also enjoyed how easy this was! During the day I pre-cut the chicken, and then made the sauce and stuck it in the fridge. When dinner time came, it was SO easy to cook the chicken and throw the sauce in. It also thickened perfectly with the cornstarch. I added about a TBS more OJ.
kevin says
February 12, 2014 at 1:51 pmWhat a Dish!: I am glad that you enjoyed it! Preparing everything ahead of time is a great idea to make things even quicker at meal time!
Lacey says
February 27, 2014 at 1:55 amWow oh wow, this orange chicken was Awesome, it ROCKS!!!! Thanks, Kevin.
Phuong Pham says
April 14, 2014 at 12:03 amI made this for dinner tonight and it was super delicious. The fact that it is healthy makes it the best orange chicken ever. It will be our staple from now on. Thanks so much!
Gillyflower says
May 31, 2014 at 4:08 amI thought it was awful. It was far too sweet and I didn't use the amount stated. I finally had to put in some bitter marmalade to rectify it. If it's better than a takeout, it doesn't say much for your restaurent.
Anonymous says
May 31, 2014 at 4:21 amDelicious.
kevin says
May 31, 2014 at 3:42 pmGillyflower: This should not have been super sweet. The sweetness from the honey should have balanced nicely with the saltiness from the soy sauce and the tartness from the rice vinegar so that it becomes more of an undertone rather than dominant. Did you use fresh orange juice or sweetened bottled orange juice? Did you use regular soy sauce or low sodium? Did you use plain rice vinegar or the sweetened rice vinegar that is used for sushi rice?
tammy says
June 2, 2014 at 10:39 pmwhy does this chicken have to be cut up in small pieces. Can't I make it with chicken breasts and thighs? Thank you.
kevin says
June 2, 2014 at 11:11 pmtammy: Generally stir-frys use small pieces of meat but you could certainly do a full chicken breast or thigh!
Keri Butler says
June 19, 2014 at 5:55 pmI made this last night with boneless/skinless chicken thighs & thought it was really good! I thought it was the perfect balance of sweet & spicy, though I did add a touch more sriracha & some red pepper flakes. Will def be making again, thanks!
kevin says
June 25, 2014 at 10:15 amKeri Butler: I'm glad you enjoyed it! I like to add extra sriracha as well! 🙂
Kelly Harrison says
February 17, 2015 at 7:56 pmLove this recipe!! It is so simple and delicious! Thank you
Sally says
February 21, 2015 at 12:49 pmThis was EXCELLENT! So much healthier than the breaded and fried version and so simple for a weeknight. I will be trying this same method with other oriental sauce creations. Thanks!
Sarah K says
April 15, 2017 at 9:52 pmThis obviously is a wonderful dish! My husband very much dislikes chicken and insisted your orange chicken recipe to be a regular weeknight meal. Next time I make it I think I'll add some cashews for some crunch and orange segments for added juice.
kevin says
April 16, 2017 at 3:33 pmSarah K: I'm glad you like it! The addition of cashews and orange segments would be amazing!