Easy Orange Chicken Recipe- On the Table in 20 Minutes! (2024)

FAQs

What is orange chicken sauce made of? ›

How to make the orange chicken sauce. The orange sauce is made from a mixture of the orange juice and zest, sugar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and rice vinegar. This is bubbled up in the wok until slightly thickened. The chicken is then added back in, and tossed in the sauce until fully coated.

What is the difference between orange chicken and General Tso? Orange chicken is crispy fried with a fruity, sweet, and tangy sauce that's caramelized into a glaze. General Tso is stir-fried in a sweet, sour, and spicy umami sauce.

While the orange chicken is one of the most famous Chinese dishes in America, it is a purely American invention, with no authentic Chinese resturants or restaurants in China serving this dish.

Orange Chicken is crispy and light due to its thin glaze. Meanwhile, Sweet and Sour Chicken is crispy with a thicker and more indulgent sauce. Their different textures make them both a delicious choice when you are craving Chinese food.

All of the flavor in the Asian chicken dish comes from the Panda Express signature orange chicken sauce, which features orange peel, soy sauce, vinegar, and red chili peppers. This gives the dish a citrusy sweet and tangy flavor with just a hint of heat.

To thicken the sauce, pour it into a small saucepan on the stove over medium-high heat. In a small bowl, combine 2 tablespoons cornstarch with 2 tablespoons water to make a cornstarch slurry. Once the sauce starts to bubble in the pan on the stovetop, add the cornstarch slurry and stir to combine.

Tangerine chicken tastes fresh and spicy, but orange chicken tastes sweet and sour. Orange chicken is crispy cooked in a sweet and little spicy orange sauce. The sweetness of orange chicken was introduced to cater to American tastes.

What is orange chicken? Orange chicken is a Chinese-American invention made with two-bite-sized pieces of boneless, skinless dark meat chicken that is battered, fried, and “wok-tossed” in a thick and sticky, sweet-and-spicy orange sauce. It was invented in 1987 by Chef Andy Kao exclusively for Panda Express.

True Chinese-style orange chicken is made with sliced fresh chicken—not the battered and fried stuff you'll find in the US—and is flavored not with fresh orange, but with dried orange or tangerine peel.

Store your leftover homemade sweet and sour sauce in a shallow, airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three weeks.

What is most similar to orange chicken? ›

General Tso's chicken and orange chicken are two popular Chinese-American dishes that are often compared. While both dishes feature crispy fried chicken pieces coated in a sweet and savory sauce, there are some key differences between the two.

The original “Orange Chicken” had no breading around each piece of chicken and the sauce was made of leftover orange or lemon peels cooked with soy sauce, chilis and garlic. The sauce had a citrus element, but it wasn't as pronounced or sweet like you would think of today.

Duck sauce (or orange sauce) is a condiment with a sweet and sour flavor and a translucent orange appearance similar to a thin jelly. Offered at American Chinese restaurants, it is used as a dip for deep-fried dishes such as wonton strips, spring rolls, egg rolls, duck, chicken, fish, or with rice or noodles.

While sweet and sour can be found in diverse forms in China, the American version builds upon the simple mixture of sugar, vinegar, and spices with the addition of fruit juice—most commonly pineapple—and ketchup, giving the sauce both its red hue and uniquely Western flavor.

It's mainly known for its orange flavor (as you can guess from the name). It's typically made with orange juice and orange zest to achieve the citrus flavor.

A delicious ready made orange sauce to go with duck, game, chicken and pork.