Get ready to experience the authentic Sichuan cuisine that inspired many other orange chicken recipes around the world. Learn how to make original orange chicken with this easy-to-follow recipe, and get ready for some delicious flavors!
Prepare the ingredients.
Before you begin, make sure that all the ingredients you will need for this recipe are available and ready. You will need one pound of chicken thighs, 1/4 cup of soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of cooking wine, 2 tablespoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of sesame seed oil, 2 teaspoons of cornstarch and 1/2 cup of freshly squeezed orange juice.
Additionally, you will also need one egg white, 1/2 cup of chicken stock, 1 tablespoon of chopped ginger and garlic each and 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Once all the ingredients are available and ready to use, you can start preparing the original orange chicken recipe. Begin by cutting the chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces. Mix the soy sauce, cooking wine, sugar, sesame seed oil and cornstarch in a bowl. In a separate bowl whisk together the egg white, chicken stock and orange juice. Heat up a large skillet with vegetable oil and stir-fry the garlic and ginger until golden brown. Once that is done add in the chicken pieces.
Before cooking your orange chicken, it is important to marinate the pieces of chicken. Start by adding soy sauce, cooking wine, and sugar into a bowl. Mix all these ingredients together until they are fully combined. Then add the chicken thighs to the marinade and ensure that each piece is well coated. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator before preparing your orange chicken dish.
The marinade will add more flavor to the chicken and also tenderize the meat. During marination, the enzymes in the soy sauce helps to break down proteins that can become tough when cooked while the sugar works on browning and caramelizing the exterior of the chicken. Once your chicken has finished marinating, you’re ready to make your orange chicken. The marinated chicken will help ensure that every bite is full of flavor and every piece succulent, tender, and juicy!
To complete your orange chicken dish, prepare a tasty and flavorful orange sauce by adding 1/4 cup of orange juice concentrate and 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar to a bowl. Next, add 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 2 teaspoons of sugar, and half a teaspoon of white pepper powder to the mix. Give all the ingredients a good mix before moving on to the next step.
Finally, take two tablespoons of cornstarch in a separate bowl and mix it with two tablespoons of cold water. Slowly pour this slurry into the orange juice mixture and whisk until everything is well combined. Transfer the sauce to a pan and cook it over low heat. Simmer everything until the sauce thickens. Once done, pour it over your fried pieces of orange chicken to give them a gorgeous glaze!
To make your authentic orange chicken, cut 500 grams of chicken into cubes and season with 1 tablespoon of ground white pepper and 1 teaspoon of salt. Heat enough oil in a wok to 350 Fahrenheit/177 Celsius. Once the oil is hot, add in your chicken cubes and fry for about 8 minutes until golden brown; drain off any extra oil. Lastly, remove the fried chicken from the wok and set aside.
Once you’ve fried the chicken, you can move onto making the orange sauce. To do that, heat a little oil over medium heat in your wok. Then, add 2 cloves of minced garlic and stir-fry until they are fragrant. Next, add 1/4 cup of sugar and 1/3 cup of white vinegar to the garlic and fry for about 2 minutes. Finally, stir in 6 tablespoons of orange juice and reduce the heat to low; cook for about 3 minutes before adding in your fried chicken cubes to the sauce and stirring until evenly coated. Serve with rice or noodles for a delicious meal!
Once you have cooked the chicken, it's time to assemble and serve the orange chicken! In a separate bowl, mix 3 tablespoons of light soy sauce, 4 tablespoons of rice vinegar, 4 tablespoons of sugar and 3 tablespoons of sesame oil. On medium heat, pour this mixture into your hot wok; add in the chicken cubes and stir everything together until evenly coated. Serve right away and enjoy!
The combination of the sweet and sour flavor from the sauce, mixed with the crispy chicken makes this orange chicken an absolute delight. A great way to enjoy this dish is to serve it over a bed of jasmine rice or noodles. If you're feeling creative and want to spice things up a bit, adding some chilli peppers or pineapple chunks will give it that perfect hint of spicy sweetness your taste buds crave!
