Orange Chicken

The formula

Every ingredient resolved to grams, expressed against the recipe's own base — next to the median of all 61.

	this recipe	typical
liquid	30%	0%
salt	1%	0%
aromatics	0%	1%
sweetener	9%	4%
fat	60%	0%

Where it stands out

• #1 of 61 for browning depth

Adapts cleanly: dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, nut-free (documented swaps, applied on the dish page)

Ingredients

Weights computed by us.

454 g	1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs ((cut into 1 1/2-inch/4cm chunks))
15 g	1 tablespoon water
	2 teaspoons Shaoxing wine
3 g	1/2 teaspoon salt
1 g	1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 g	1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
0 g	1/8 teaspoon white pepper
43 g	1/3 cup cornstarch
272 g	1 to 1 1/2 cups neutral oil ((such as canola, peanut, or vegetable oil, for shallow-frying the chicken))
	1/2 cup fresh orange juice ((or store-bought))
120 g	1/2 cup chicken stock
25 g	2 tablespoons sugar
37 g	2 1/2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
17 g	1 tablespoon oyster sauce
2 g	1/4 teaspoon salt
315 g	3 to 4 pieces dried tangerine or mandarin orange peel ((optional))
	6 dried red chili peppers
	2 star anise
1 g	1/2 teaspoon garlic ((minced, optional))
1 g	1/2 teaspoon ginger ((minced, optional))
16 g	2 tablespoons cornstarch ((mixed into slurry with 2 tablespoons water))
	1 scallion ((sliced on an angle into 1 1/2-inch/4cm pieces))

Method: 9 steps, published by thewoksoflife.com — open the original ↗ or use bake mode for a follow-along with a screen that stays on.

“This worked out well for the discount boneless skinless chicken thighs I got cheap. I hate when they take the skin off, but at least it was organic. I grew up eating from a "Cantonese" restaurant, according to their sign, and no meat except the brandy fried ” — a cook, 4.0★

“You are absolutely amazing Bill. This recipe is perfection! I suggest for anyone making this recipe to take their time, read the recipe carefully, and don’t deviate at all if possible. I made the mistake the very first time I made this by misreading the instru” — a cook, 5.0★