Air Fryer Orange Chicken

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Air fryer orange chicken is better than 🥡 Chinese takeout. It’s a restaurant-style dish with the perfect taste and texture. Crisp on the outside, juicy on the inside, it’s coated in a delicious sweet/savory orange sauce. Enjoy this tasty entrée for lunch or dinner.

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🧑🏼‍🍳 Why We Love Air Fryer Orange Chicken

• It’s a healthy feel-good meal. Because it’s cooked in an air fryer, there’s no pan frying in oil. And clean-up is easy.
• This 30-minute recipe is simple to make. It cooks faster than a pot of rice. For a complete takeout meal in about 35 minutes, start the rice on the stovetop before beginning this recipe.
• You can prep this main dish in advance. Assemble the orange sauce. Bread and cook the chicken. Transfer them to separate airtight containers and refrigerate. When ready to enjoy, warm the sauce and chicken separately. Add them to a bowl and toss to combine.
• It tastes just like Chinese takeout orange chicken. It has that sweet tangy flavor and delightful crisp texture you’ve come to love at places like Panda Express, or the Chinese takeout counter at the mall.

🛒 Ingredients

🍊For the Orange Sauce

• Orange Juice: Provides the orange chicken with a fresh orange taste.
• Orange Zest: For a maximum burst of fresh orange flavor.
• Soy Sauce: Adds a salty, umami flavor to the sauce. I recommend low-sodium soy sauce, if you have it on hand.
• Light Brown Sugar: Adds a bit of sweetness to the sauce.
• Rice Vinegar: The acidity of this ingredient enhances the natural acidity of the orange juice and balances out the sweetness of the brown sugar.
• Grated Ginger: It has a warm, fiery taste with a kick of heat. A classic addition to orange sauce.
• Grated Garlic: It has a bold rustic taste with a hint of nutty flavor.
• Cornstarch: We use it to create a slurry to thicken the orange sauce.
• Water: Provides the liquid needed to create a slurry for thickening.
• Sesame Oil (optional): While this ingredient can add a rich nutty flavor to the orange chicken sauce, using too much sesame oil can overpower the more subtle orange flavor that’s meant to be the star of this dish.

🐓 For the Mandarin Chicken

• Chicken Breasts: We prefer boneless skinless breasts for air fryer orange chicken. But chicken thighs will also work.
• Large Eggs: Help the flour mixture stick to the pieces of chicken to create a crispy breading.
• All-purpose Flour: An essential ingredient for a crisp, crunchy breading.
• Cornstarch: Contributes to an extra-crispy coating. Helps prevent gluten development in the all-purpose flour, and helps absorb any excess moisture during cooking.
• Kosher Salt: Enhances the flavor of the recipe so it doesn’t taste bland.
• Garlic Powder: Seasons the breading so the chicken tastes delicious.
• Olive Oil Spray: For air frying. We’ll spritz the the coated pieces of chicken to help them crisp up while cooking.

🥢 For Garnishing

• Sesame Seeds: A classic garnish for Asian dishes. They add delicious texture – a mild nuttiness and tasty crunch. Feel free to use white seeds, black seeds, or a mix.
• Green Onion: Adds color and freshness to the air fryer orange chicken.

📖 Recipe Steps

🍊For the Orange Sauce

1. In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine orange juice, orange zest, soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, ginger and garlic. Microwave for 2 minutes, or until the sugar has dissolved and the sauce is hot.
2. In a small bowl, stir together the cornstarch and water. Add the slurry to the orange sauce and stir to combine. Microwave again in 1 minute intervals, stirring between each interval, until the sauce has thickened into a glaze (about 3 to 4 minutes total). If using sesame oil, start by adding 1/2 teaspoon and stir it in. Do a taste test. If desired, add another 1/2 teaspoon. We want to make sure it doesn’t overpower the more subtle orange flavor.
3. Set the sauce aside to cool completely while you prepare the chicken. 👉🏻 Note: It’s very important to let the sauce cool completely before saucing the crispy chicken. If the sauce is hot, the steam will make the chicken soggy.

🐓 For the Mandarin Chicken

RECIPE PREP: Preheat the air fryer to 400ºF for 5 minutes.

1. In a shallow bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch, salt and garlic powder. Bread the chicken: toss the pieces in the flour mixture until evenly coated. Dip the flour-coated chicken into the beaten eggs. Roll the egg-coated chicken pieces back in the flour mixture. Make sure they’re breaded well on all sides. Shake off any excess coating.
2. Arrange the chicken in a single layer inside the air fryer basket, leaving a bit of space between each piece. Lightly spray the chicken with olive oil. To prevent overcrowding the basket, you may need to cook the chicken in batches.
3. Cook the chicken at 400ºF for 6 minutes. Then flip the pieces over. Cook for an additional 5 to 6 minutes, or until golden and crisp, and the internal temperature reaches 165ºF.
4. Once the sauce has cooled completely, add the crispy cooked chicken to the bowl of cooled orange sauce and toss to combine. Garnish with sesame seeds and sliced green onion. Serve and enjoy immediately.

👩🏻‍🍳 RecipeFAQ

These are the most commonly-asked questions when making air fryer orange chicken, and the most helpful answers for recipe success.

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Rate This Recipe ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Flavor testers rated this the BEST orange chicken recipe. They enjoyed the sweet/savory flavor of the orange sauce, and the crisp tasty coating on the mandarin chicken. They loved making this classic dish in the air fryer.

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