Orange
Chicken is food of the
gods! My friends and I used to go to
Panda Express (or whatever other Americanated-
Chinese resturant I go to) and get a 3 item combo.
Fried rice and 3 servings of orange chicken. Orange Chicken is the reason I ever go to Panda Express.
And so, from
TopSecretRecipies.com:
This one comes from a fast-growing chain of take-out Chinese food restaurants, which, in February, celebrated its 300th store opening in
Las Vegas,
Nevada. As far as
Chinese food goes, I think the stuff they throw together in the sizzling
woks at this chain is surprisingly
tasty. And many of you seem to think so too; I've received many a request for this dish. It's a twist on the traditional sweet and sour chicken so commonly found at Chinese restaurants over the years. However, this popular menu item has a delicious, citrus-laced, tangy-sweet sauce with a spicy nip the regulars find truly
addictive. The chain claims to cook all of its food in woks, including the sauces. But this home-grown version will work fine -- whether you go for a wok, or not.
Sauce
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons
orange juice
1 cup packed dark brown
sugar
1/3 cup rice
vinegar
2 1/2 tablespoons
soy sauce
1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon
lemon juice
1 teaspoon minced
water chestnuts
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh
ginger
1/4 teaspoon minced
garlic
1 rounded teaspoon chopped
green onion
1/4 teaspoon crushed
red pepper flakes
5 teaspoons
corn starch
2 teaspoons
arrowroot
Chicken
4
chicken breast fillets
1 cup ice water
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon
baking soda
1/4 teaspoon
salt
1 1/2 cups unsifted cake flour
2-4 cups vegetable oil
1. Combine all of the sauce ingredients -- except the corn starch and arrowroot -- in a small saucepan over high heat. Stir often while bringing mixture to a boil. When sauce reaches a boil, remove it from heat and allow it to cool a bit, uncovered.
2. Slice chicken breasts into bite-size chunks. Remove exactly 1 cup of the marinade from the pan and pour it over the chicken in a large resealable plastic bag or other container which allows the chicken to be completely covered with the
marinade. Chicken should marinate for at least a couple hours. Cover remaining sauce and leave it to cool until the chicken is ready.
3. When chicken has marinated, preheat 2-inches of vegetable oil in a wok or
skillet to 350 degrees.
4. Combine corn starch with arrowroot in a small bowl, then add 3 tablespoons of water. Stir until corn starch and arrowroot have dissolved. Pour this mixture into the sauce and set the pan over high heat. When sauce begins to bubble and thickens cover and remove from heat.
5. Beat together the ice water and egg in a medium bowl. Add baking soda and salt.
6. Add 3/4 cup of the flour and stir with a fork just until the flour in blended into the mixture. The batter should still be lumpy.
7. Sprinkle another 1/4 cup of flour on top of the batter and mix with only one or two strokes. Most of this flour will still floating on top of the mixture. Put the remaining flour (1/2 cup) into a medium bowl.
8. Dip each piece of chicken first into the flour, then into the batter. Let some of the batter drip off and then slide the chicken into the oil. Fry up to 1/2 of the chicken pieces at a time for 3-4 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip the chicken over halfway through the cooking time. Remove the chicken to a
rack or
paper towels to drain.
9. As the chicken cooks, reheat the sauce left covered on the stove. Stir
occasionally.
10. When all of the chicken is done, pour it into a large bowl, and cover with the thickened sauce. Stir gently until all of the pieces are well coated.
(http://www.topsecretrecipes.com)
Serves four.