Orange Chicken Recipe
An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott
Orange Chicken Recipe Overview
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Serves: 4 people
Ingredients Needed
For Chicken
- 500g/1.1lbs chicken thigh fillets
- 60ml/2flozs soy sauce
- 25ml/1floz Shaoxing cooking wine
- 2 teaspoons grated ginger
- 2 teaspoons crushed garlic
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- Oil for deep frying
- 180g/6ozs potato starch (cornflour or fine cornstarch also works)
For Orange Chicken Sauce
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 1 cup/250ml/8.8flozs orange juice
- 120g/4ozs white sugar
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ginger paste
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon cornflour/fine cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water
To serve
- Green onions
- Toasted white sesame seeds
- Steamed rice
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1 - Cut up chicken thigh fillets into inch sized pieces and place into a ziplock bag. In a bowl mix the soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, grated ginger, garlic and sugar into a bowl until sugar starts to dissolve and then pour this over the chicken and massage it over the chicken so each piece is coated. Set aside while you make the sauce. It only needs a few minutes to marinate.
Step 2 - Place the orange zest, orange juice, sugar, rice vinegar, soy sauce, cayenne pepper, ginger and garlic into a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer for 3-4 minutes until the sugar has dissolved and the sauce has become glossy. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the cornflour and water together and then stir this slurry into the orange mixture. Simmer gently for 1 minute, then remove from the heat.
Step 3 - Make the chicken. Add oil to a cast iron pot or deep fryer and heat it to 180C/350F. While it is heating up, drain the sauce from the chicken and then place the chicken back into the ziplock bag along with the potato starch. Seal and shake so that the chicken pieces are coated in the flour. Fry the chicken pieces in 3 batches. Cook in the hot oil for 5 minutes then turn over and then cook for another 2-3 minutes. Drain on a double layer of paper towels. Toss the chicken into the orange sauce and serve with steamed rice, green onions and toasted sesame seeds.
Personal Note
I try and eat fruit but honestly it doesn't come naturally to me. I prefer vegetables but I know it's good to get Vitamin C especially when you're travelling. When I was in Gruyere, Switzerland recently I made sure to go down for breakfast. Usually I skip breakfast because I don't get hungry until after 11am but food is expensive there so I would make something to eat. One day I had a lot of travelling to do at an early hour but the idea of eating breakfast was too much so I made myself a little sandwich for the train as I headed for the airport home. I got some Gruyere AOP bread (a brioche) and added some gruyere cheese, ham and turkey slices and some roasted cherry tomatoes from the breakfast buffet. Then I wrapped it up in two napkins and put it in my bag. Then I grabbed an apricot from the fruit bowl and I was on my way.
I was travelling with our host Michele who had kindly come with me as I had a few trains to catch and heavy luggage and she was headed the same way. We sat down opposite a couple who were friendly and smiled at us. I took my phone out of my coat pocket and it had some gunk all over it. It looked red and orange and was mushy and pulpy. "Ugggghh, what is that?" I said disgustedly feeling the squelch between my fingers and seeing it smeared across my phone screen. It kind of look like a pale blood clot.
It turns out it was the apricot I had taken from the buffet that had squashed in my bag! I burst out laughing and Michele laughed too because quite frankly it looked gross. The lady opposite us watched and tried her best to stifle her laughter covering her mouth because the Swiss are polite people but I could see that it was becoming too hard to stifle her laughter and her face turned pink with laughter! I just laughed and shrugged at her, the international language of "Eh, what can you do?".
So tell me Dear Reader, do you ever make yourself a "travel sandwich"? And have you ever left something in your pocket that turned bad? Have you ever tried orange chicken?