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Orange Chicken Makeover

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Sweet, spicy and flavorful – this makeover Asian Orange Chicken is a lighter and healthier alternative to the popular Chinese fast food take-out dish and it’s quick and easy to make!

Sweet, spicy and flavorful – this makeover Asian Orange Chicken is a lighter and healthier alternative to the popular Chinese fast food take-out dish and it's quick and easy to make!Orange Chicken Makeover

I love taking popular American-Chinese fast food dishes and making them over! You have so much more control of what you’re consuming when you cook your own food. A few favorite fast food makeovers are Chicken and Broccoli, General Tsos Chicken and Pepper Steak.

Orange Chicken is usually battered and deep fried. To be honest, this is not a dish I would order because I’m not a fan of battered sweet Chinese dishes, but I was happy to tackle a lighter version. My solution was to skip all that frying, and make a flavorful orange sauce. The outcome was great, and my husband even gave it two thumbs up!

Asian orange sauce is super easy and simple to make. It’s certainly a healthier option than using a bottled orange sauce with unknown ingredients and higher sugar content. To make this Asian orange sauce you’ll need fresh squeezed orange juice, chicken broth, soy sauce, a bit of sugar, rice wine, rice vinegar, sriracha, corn starch and some white pepper. You can even put this sauce over a white fish like Tilapia or over some sauteed veggies.

I served this over Cauliflower “Fried Rice” but you could even saute some bell peppers, snow peas, broccoli or asparagus and add them at the end.

Sweet, spicy and flavorful – this makeover Asian Orange Chicken is a lighter and healthier alternative to the popular Chinese fast food take-out dish and it's quick and easy to make!

Orange Chicken Makeover

4.92 from 23 votes
4
Cals:288
Protein:32.5
Carbs:18
Fat:9
Sweet, spicy and flavorful – this makeover Asian Orange Chicken is a lighter and healthier alternative to the popular Chinese fast food take-out dish and it's quick and easy to make!
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Chinese, Japanese
Sweet, spicy and flavorful – this makeover Asian Orange Chicken is a lighter and healthier alternative to the popular Chinese fast food take-out dish and it's quick and easy to make!
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Total: 30 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

For the Orange Sauce:

  • 1/3 cup freshly-squeezed orange juice
  • 1/4 cup reduced sodium chicken broth
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce, Tamari for gluten-free
  • 2 tbsp raw sugar
  • 1 tbsp Chinese rice wine
  • 1 tbsp sriracha, or more to taste
  • 1 tbsp rice vinegar
  • 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
  • 2 teaspoons corn starch

For the chicken:

  • 20 oz skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into small cubes
  • kosher salt, to taste
  • 1 1/2 tbsp corn starch
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • 4 cloves minced garlic
  • 1- inch grated ginger
  • 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
  • 2 tbsp chopped scallions
  • 1/2 tsp sesame seeds, for garnish

Instructions

  • Mix the orange sauce ingredients and set aside.
  • Season the chicken lightly with salt and coat evenly with corn starch, set aside.
  • Heat a wok on high heat, add 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and add half of the chicken. Cook 2 to 3 minutes on each side until well browned, set aside.
  • Add 1 teaspoon of oil and chicken and repeat cooking 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Set aside with the rest of the chicken.
  • Add remaining teaspoon of oil and quickly stir-fry the minced garlic and ginger until fragrant, about 1 minute.
  • Add the orange zest then return the chicken to the pan.
  • Quickly stir the chicken then add the orange sauce and cook until the sauce thickens,about 1 to 2 minutes.
  • Divide between 4 plates and garnish with the scallion and sesame seeds.

Last Step:

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Nutrition

Calories: 288 kcal, Carbohydrates: 18 g, Protein: 32.5 g, Fat: 9 g, Saturated Fat: 0.5 g, Cholesterol: 81 mg, Sodium: 463 mg, Fiber: 0.5 g, Sugar: 9 g

Categories:

Sweet, spicy and flavorful – this makeover Asian Orange Chicken is a lighter and healthier alternative to the popular Chinese fast food take-out dish and it's quick and easy to make!