Orange Chicken

We love this...

Orange Chicken from Panda express has become our choice when we go hungry during our travels to America. Asian cuisine is still our preference when it comes to dining. My daughter love it and ask if I could make it. So I was challenged to try it, anyway the ingredients are just simple. It became one of our sought after dish so at least we can have it anytime at the comfort of our home. This is a Chinese recipe with a crispy fried chicken bites covered in a sweet tangy sauce. I prefer to use chicken breast so it's easy to cut up in small pieces and without bones, the preparation is a little bit lengthy but if you love to cook like me then it will be easy just follow these simple steps. I marinate the chicken meat to make sure the meat softens and absorbs the flavor of the orange. This recipe originally come from Hunan province in China and I think has evolved in many places and is now famous in America more than in China where it came from.

Marinade:
1/2 kl chicken breast cut in small pieces
1 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 cup flour to coat the chicken pieces
salt and pepper to taste
3 cups oil for frying

Sauce:
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ginger,minced
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
2 tablespoons of orange zest
1/4 cup brown sugar, adjust to your liking
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 tablespoons corn starch
2 sprigs of spring onion for garnish 

Method:

• Marinate the cut up chicken for 30 minutes or longer.
• Mix flour, salt and pepper and add marinated chicken, juice discarded making sure chicken is all covered with flour.
• Fry until crispy and golden in color, set aside.
• Make the sauce by mixing all sauce ingredients add salt and pepper to taste let boil in low heat. Add corn starch dilluted in 1/4 cup of water stirring constantly until thick, set aside.

• Strain and transfer sauce in a small container leaving 1 cup in deep pan putting the fried chicken back and let simmer until everything is all coated liberally.
• Enjoy your orange chicken sprinkled with spring onion add sauce as you eat. Enjoy this simple and yet delicious recipe.