Orange Chicken Recipe
When most people think of the ideal orange chicken recipe, they tend to conjure up images of thick Asian meals. There’s something comforting about this type of dish, though it can be made just a bit better.
Your basic orange chicken recipe includes orange juice, vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, and garlic. This mixture is usually combined with cornstarch over a medium heat until it turns into a thick sauce. Then, the chicken is added to the mix, coated, and cooked for thirty minutes. While there is nothing wrong with this method, having some knowledge of Asian cuisine will turn this rather standard dish into a masterpiece.
Keeping in mind the ingredients mentioned above, zest two oranges and place the zest aside. Then, zest one lemon placing this zest in the same dish. Next, add one tablespoon of sake, one tablespoon of soy sauce, and one tablespoon of brown sugar to a skillet and boil to reduce. Once this liquid has been reduced, add the orange and lemon zest to the sauce. Then, add 1/3 cup of rice vinegar to a wok, along with some chopped ginger and garlic. Cook the chicken in this liquid until it is almost done. Remove the chicken, and add some chopped vegetables to the rice vinegar liquid. Sauté the vegetables until they are cooked al dente.
Now, add the reduced liquid with the zest to the pan and add the chicken back into the mix. Cook the chicken on low, covered, for thirty minutes. During the last five minutes, add ¼ cup of orange juice. Remove the wok from the heat, serve this dish over rice, and add just a squeeze of orange juice to the top. This version of a standard orange chicken recipe will really surprise you. A cross between traditional teriyaki, fresh citrus, and regular Asian fare, this is one dish that you’ll keep coming back to again and again.
As soon as you learn how to make great Asian food at home, you will discover that takeout food just doesn’t taste the same. The trick to making any great food in your house is to use top ingredients... the rest just falls into place.
Try the orange chicken recipe listed above, tweak it to your standards, and enjoy every last bite. Who knows, you just may become the next Asian inspired top chef.