Orange Chicken

I was planning on making this over the long weekend, but as so often occurs in life, it didn't happen. The frozen chicken sat in the fridge to thaw for one night. Then, at eight the next night, my mom and I rushed to cook it. So this chicken had soaked in the sauce for a good twenty-two hours by the time I finally got to eat it, poured over rice.

My dad made out-of-a-box gnocchi, complaining the whole time about the smell of the chicken (I'm pretty sure it was the sauce, but whatever). I tried a little of the gnocchi; holy cow! I'm not a potato pasta lover, but if you haven't tried it, I highly recommend you do. If you have then, you know what I'm talking about. I, personally, can't stand the heavy-thickness, but loads of people can't get enough of it. 

 

Combine water, orange juice, soy sauce, lemon juice, vinegar, brown sugar, orange zest, ginger, garlic, and green onion in a saucepan over medium-high heat and bring mixture to a boil.  In a separate bowl, dissolve 1 tbsp cornstarch in 1-2 tbsp of water, and then slowly pour into sauce.  Reduce heat to low and stir until sauce thickens into a syrup-like consistency.  Remove from heat and allow to cool a bit.  

Meanwhile, prepare chicken.  Coat chicken in cornstarch, adding more cornstarch as needed and then heat oil in another skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken pieces to skillet and brown on all sides, letting chicken cook through (work in batches if necessary). 

 

Drain any excess oil before adding sauce mixture to chicken.  

                     Try to “coat” both sides of chicken in the sauce and simmer on low for 5 minutes. 

Ingredients

For the sauce (slightly adapted from Blog is the New Black)

• 1 1/2 C water
• 2 tbsp fresh orange juice
• 2 1/2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 C fresh lemon juice
• 1/3 C vinegar (I used balsamic)
• 1/2 C packed brown sugar
• 2 tbsp orange zest
• 1/2 tsp minced ginger
• 1/2 tsp minced garlic
• half bunch of green onions, chopped
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1-2 tbsp water

For the chicken:

• 1 lb. boneless chicken tenderloins, cut into small bites
• 1/4-1/2 C cornstarch
• 2-3 tbsp cooking oil

Directions

1. Combine water, orange juice, soy sauce, lemon juice, vinegar, brown sugar, orange zest, ginger, garlic, and green onion in a saucepan over medium-high heat and bring mixture to a boil.  In a separate bowl, dissolve 1 tbsp cornstarch in 1-2 tbsp of water, and then slowly pour into sauce.  Reduce heat to low and stir until sauce thickens into a syrup-like consistency.  Remove from heat and allow to cool a bit. 
2. Meanwhile, prepare chicken.  Coat chicken in cornstarch, adding more cornstarch as needed and then heat oil in another skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken pieces to skillet and brown on all sides, letting chicken cook through (work in batches if necessary). 
3. Drain any excess oil before adding sauce mixture to chicken.  Try to “coat” both sides of chicken in the sauce and simmer on low for 5 minutes. 
4. Serve with rice or noodles if desired.