This Panda Express Orange Chicken recipe tastes just like the takeout version with crispy chicken tossed in a sweet and spicy orange sauce.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Canola oil – use any high smoke point oil like avocado oil, grapeseed oil or coconut oil.
- Chicken – to keep this dish healthier, I use boneless skinless chicken breasts. If you prefer dark meat, feel free to use boneless skinless thighs.
- Cornstarch – arrowroot starch, tapioca or potato starch would also work.
- Scallions – these are the popular choice for onions in most Asian-inspired dishes. You can substitute white onion if you need to.
- Orange juice – freshly squeezed is best but you can use bottled orange juice in a pinch.
- Honey – this adds sweetness to the sauce. If you need a substitute, you can use agave syrup or maple syrup, just keep in mind that the flavour of the sauce will be a little different.
- Hoisin sauce – swap this out for a combination of teriyaki or soy sauce, plus a combination of either plum jam or BBQ molasses.
- Rice vinegar – apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar will work as well.
- Garlic – fresh minced garlic is best but garlic powder will work in a pinch.
- Orange zest – lemon zest can be substituted but will have a slightly different flavour.
- Ginger – use fresh minced ginger. If you can’t find any, ground ginger can be used instead.
- White rice – or any other rice of your choice.
- Butter – you can use a little bit of margarine or olive oil instead to make the rice moist.
- Salt – to taste.
How to make Panda Express orange chicken
- Make the orange sauce.
- Prepare your ingredients.
- Toss the chicken in cornstarch.
- Cook the chicken in a large skillet.
- Toss the chicken with the orange sauce.
- Serve over rice and enjoy!
Tips to getting the perfect crispy chicken
There are two important tricks to getting the best crispy chicken.
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- Coat the chicken in cornstarch. Cornstarch and other cooking starches react to heat, causing the food to become brown and crispy. You won't have those results if you use flour.
- Make sure the pan is VERY hot. If you own a stir-fry wok, I highly recommend that you use it to cook the chicken. Woks are designed to heat up quickly and they retain heat really well. If you don't have access to one, you can use a traditional skillet. Just be sure to get it really hot before you add the chicken.
Frequently Asked Questions
The orange chicken from Panda Express tastes slightly sweet, a bit tangy and slightly spicy. It’s so delicious! And when you make this version at home, you won’t have to worry about any additives or artificial flavours.
This dish is a little hot and provides the perfect blend of sweet and spicy. If you want to add even more kick to this dish, you can add a bit of sriracha sauce.
The orange sauce is one of the best parts of this dish – and it’s super easy to make. All you need to do is mix together some orange juice, honey, hoisin sauce, rice vinegar, garlic, orange zest and ginger to replicate your favourite takeout dish. Plus, it has way less preservatives than the original version!
Using the ingredients shown in the recipe card below, one serving of this meal has 449 calories, including half a cup of cooked white rice. In comparison, one serving of the fast-food version from Panda Express has 490 calories, without the rice.
Storing and reheating
Any leftovers should be refrigerated and eaten or frozen within 5 days. Be sure to place any leftovers into an airtight glass container.
The best way to reheat orange chicken is in a skillet over medium heat. Microwaving tends to change the texture of the chicken, but if you’re in a hurry, you can microwave for 2-3 minutes. Just make sure to sprinkle some water over top before microwaving to avoid that dreaded leftover chicken taste.
Freezing this recipe
You can freeze orange chicken for up to 3 months in an airtight glass container. When you’re ready to eat, let it thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating on the stovetop and serving with fresh rice. You can freeze the rice as well in a separate container.
More Panda Express copycat recipes
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on turning this recipe into leftovers.
- I get all my free-range chicken from Butcher Box, conveniently delivered to me frozen.
Panda Express Orange Chicken {Copycat}
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp canola oil
- 1 lb chicken breasts, diced
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- 4 green onions, sliced
- Sesame seeds, for garnish
Orange chicken sauce
- 1/3 cup orange juice preferably from an orange
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 1 tsp ginger, minced
Rice
- 1 1/4 cups water
- 1 cup white rice
- 1 tsp butter
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
- Mix together sauce ingredients in a bowl and set aside. Add rice ingredients to a rice cooker and cook.
- Toss chicken with cornstarch in a large bowl. Heat canola oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Once oil is smoking, add chicken and stir fry for 6-7 minutes until browned and cooked through.
- Toss chicken with sauce, then serve over rice. Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds, then serve and enjoy!
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