Fry
Homemade Takeout: Orange Chicken
Popular on Food52
44 Reviews
Amy T.
December 5, 2022
I thought it was delicious! It's actually great even before the orange sauce is added! Big hit at my house....I didn't see ketchup in the ingredients either and never used it. I didn't miss it.
JennyDodson
September 21, 2022
This is a fantastic recipe. It's important to follow the directions, and be patient in letting hot oil to cook the chicken. It requires patience, but we really enjoyed it.
ann H.
May 28, 2020
This is a really good recipe, and easy to make on a weeknight.
The instructions said to add ketchup, so I added 1 TBSP. and hoped it would harmonize with the other ingredients. It worked well enough.
I followed the recipe exactly, and next time I’ll add some red pepper flakes to the sauce and I’ll top with toasted sesame seeds.
Thanks for sharing this recipe! I’ll definitely make it again.
The instructions said to add ketchup, so I added 1 TBSP. and hoped it would harmonize with the other ingredients. It worked well enough.
I followed the recipe exactly, and next time I’ll add some red pepper flakes to the sauce and I’ll top with toasted sesame seeds.
Thanks for sharing this recipe! I’ll definitely make it again.
kristina
October 29, 2019
Has this recipe changed since originally published? A few people mention wine, but there's no wine in the ingredient list. Also, there's no ketchup, but ketchup is listed later on in the recipe.
Robin
March 17, 2018
Great flavors, easy to prepare. A deep saucepan with sufficient oil (I used close to 1/2 inch of peanut oil) along with leaving the chicken untouched while it cooks, should alleviate the sticking problem.
windofheaven
February 11, 2018
White wine is pretty 'foreign' to traditional Chinese cuisine. I'd go with rice wine/sake or sherry instead. Would definitely benefit from a squirt of ketchup, a few crush or dried whole chiles (arbol) and strips of orange peel.
Elise F.
December 9, 2017
I followed this recipe exactly and it was totally inedible. The chicken was a gooey mess that stuck to the pan. I had such high hopes for this and they fell short.
Matti N.
November 1, 2017
Every ounce of coating stuck to my pan, despite more than sufficient oil. Mostly a disaster of a recipe.
windofheaven
February 11, 2018
Not enough oil specified for properly deep-frying the chicken. They need room to swim!
ENEB
August 1, 2017
This was not good at all. In fact, it was inedible. My kids are big fans of orange chicken so I thought I would make a homemade version. I had great hope for this recipe but it simply doesn't work. I wish I could say otherwise. First recipe from Food52 that was a hug flop.
Anna F.
March 23, 2017
this was delicious and my family loved it. so much better than take out. thanks for an amazing recreation!
Marie
February 28, 2017
I made this for dinner last night for my family of 4. I didn't know how much chicken 4 chicken breasts called for in the recipe really was, so I settled on 2 pounds. As it turned out, that amount of chicken pretty much used up all the marinade, so I didn't even bother with the extra step of transferring the chicken to another bowl before sprinkling with the cornstarch. I just added the cornstarch right to the marinade bowl with no ill effects noticed. My family really liked this! I have to confess I've never had Panda Express orange chicken, So I can't compare. In all honesty it wasn't as delicious as the orange chicken we had at this authentic Chinese restaurant in Chinatown in Chicago last spring. But it was quite tasty and a nice change from what we'd been having. It's a keeper!
Carolina H.
February 14, 2017
This recipe looks yummy but what about the rice? Someone has the recipe to make the perfect panda-express white rice that comes with the orange chicken?
Yayita
January 30, 2017
This was a pleasant surprise; as it was as satisfying as orange chicken from takeouts I had back in college. To say they taste and look the same would be a lie, but I wasn't after eating takeout. I was craving sweet and tangy chicken entree and this hit the spot. I followed the recipe as directed, but since I didn't have orange marmalade I used strawberry jam which could account for the darker orange sauce coloring. I definitely browned my chicken a bit more which gave my chicken a darker hue than the photos; I plan to be more attentive next time and get them lightly browned.
jenncc
August 30, 2016
This is really good! I did not use all the sauce but it was delicious. Will be making this again.
linklau
May 28, 2016
This sauce is extremely intense with orange flavor! I think I should have just used enough sauce to make the chicken glisten, instead of enough for the chicken to swim in. Family liked it, but we all agreed that the sauce was too strong.
Kate
April 7, 2016
This is as good as it looks and really easy! Do not skip the ginger -- it adds the perfect depth to the flavor, oh so good. I am nervous about my chicken cooking times so fried mine for 5:30 and it was probably a little crispier but very good. I followed this recipe perfectly (other than the chicken cook time) and it really turned out beautifully. Agree there are more dishes to clean up than I'd like, but if you clean as you go it's not so bad. Thank you!! Yum!
lois
February 25, 2016
I made this last night and we enjoyed it. It was a little dish-intensive for my taste (two bowls for raw chicken, a pot for the sauce, and a very messy skillet for cooking the chicken--not to mention whatever you need for your side dish(es)), but I will make it again on occasion. I was concerned about quantity: what is "four chicken breasts"? For the record, I used a package of chicken that was about 1.7 lbs before trimming. There was enough marinade and sauce, but none to spare.
Marie
February 28, 2017
Same concerns here! As I noted, I settled on about 2 pounds of chicken for a family of 4. We had some leftovers, but this produced a good ratio of sauce to chicken. Also, I dirtied every pan in my kitchen plus several bowls. I had a ton of cleaning to do afterwards. It's a good recipe, but there's a reason people order take-out. That said, it was good enough I will be making it again, just not on a weekly rotation.
Linda A.
February 21, 2016
What does one use in place of the white wine--which Panda Express doesn't use according to cv?
David
November 28, 2016
Mirin (Japanese rice wine) should work. Since it's used to make teriyaki sauce, I could see Panda Express using it. Look it up and you'll see lots of information of its use in Oriental cooking.
Marie
February 28, 2017
I used Japanese sake, because that's what I had on hand in my fridge. It turned out delicious.
rinamay
January 19, 2016
I think I'm going to try this using tofu instead of chicken. My mouth is watering just this recipe.
Josh D.
December 27, 2015
White wine. Does anyone have any words of advice about what kind of wine would work best? Chardonnay, Sauvion Blanc, etc...?
702551
February 6, 2016
If you have a "daily drinker" white wine, just use that, no need for anything fancy here. Pour in something that you'd drink, but not something so expensive that you'd regret eating something in which you can't taste it.
With all the other flavors in this dish, the wine isn't a crucial part. Without a doubt, Panda Express does not use wine.
With all the other flavors in this dish, the wine isn't a crucial part. Without a doubt, Panda Express does not use wine.
Nancy
November 18, 2015
This was delicious! The only complaint from my sons was there wasn't enough.... I'll double recipe next time.
Alvin
November 17, 2015
Queen? Gender bias anyone.
Kendra V.
November 17, 2015
i am a queen, and was addressing myself, as i often do while recipe writing. you can change it to king in your mind if that's helpful to you!
Alvin
November 17, 2015
No worries. King or Queen, the dish is tasty. (I've made something very similar many times.)
Alina
November 16, 2015
I have been looking for an orange chicken recipe for a while now, I have found some to try but did not come out how I always wanted so I gave up. The ingredients used in this one looks delicious and is something that I have not found yet. My family is obsessed with orange chicken, so I would love to cook a whole bowl for them! Hope this one turns out yummy as it sounds.
Brittany L.
November 15, 2015
I made this for dinner tonight and it was perfect. I did substitute the canola oil for Safflower oil and the soy sauce for liquid aminos. I am really happy with how tasty it came out and am looking forward to my leftovers for lunch!
HapppyBee
November 15, 2015
Oooh, I can't wait to make this. Yes, I get my cravings too, and this would be one of them. I always want to have it more orangey, so nice to have a recipe to make at home. I can always add some orange rind or orange essential oil and maybe some red pepper flakes. Yum! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
GrandmaGG
November 15, 2015
My mom loves Orange Chicken...from this really icky place in town. I'm going to convert her to homemade with this recipe. Considering the sticking issue, a non-stick pan should eliminate the problem.
Mary D.
November 13, 2015
I doesn't always take time to prepare really the chicken but these recipe tempt me to try!
NanJ
November 13, 2015
This was good, but the chicken cubes stuck badly to the bottom of my pot. I did have 1/4" of properly heated oil. It was quite a chore to unstick the chicken from the pot in order to turn them over. The second side also stuck to the bottom. I ended up leaving a lot of shreds of chicken stuck to the pot. I'd appreciate any tips you have for preventing this situation.
Cindy
November 15, 2015
Haven't tried this recipe, but will soon. I'd recommend flour instead. Shake all the chix pieces in a flour bag, separate them onto a dish (not touching each other) and throw in fridge for 1/2 hour, then fry. Usually works just fine 4 me.
Marilyn
January 12, 2016
This happened to me, too, so I decided to bake the rest in a hot oven (around 500 F). This worked really well, and will be the method I use in the future.
beejay45
February 22, 2016
Keep in mind that this is a stir fry dish, so just browning the chicken the way you would for chicken strips or something is going to cause problems. A wok is the optimum choice for cooking this, but a saute pan is fine, too, you just have to keep stirring and flipping until the pieces are browned to your liking.
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