Though called Chinese food in North America, ‘orange chicken’ is rarely found in Chinese restaurants in China. It seems its more an Americanized mutation of the sweet & sour dishes found in China.
Chef, Andy Kao is credited with inventing orange chicken in 1987. Inspired by flavors from the Hunan Province of China, he developed the dish while he was employed as Panda Express’ executive chef in Hawaii.
I, personally, have never enjoyed eating anything that is coated in a heavy batter. Tempura is different from other fried fare due to its distinctive batter. It uses no bread crumbs and less grease than other frying methods. The light batter is made of cold water (sometimes sparkling water is used to keep the batter light) and soft wheat flour. Eggs, baking powder, baking soda, cornstarch, oil and/or spices may also be added.
Tempura batter is traditionally mixed in small batches for only a few seconds. Leaving lumps in the mixture along with the cold batter temperature, result in a unique fluffy and crisp structure when cooked. Over mixing tempura batter will result in activation of the wheat gluten, which causes the flour mixture to become soft and dough-like when fried.
The orange chicken I’m making today uses a nice light tempura batter, is grilled instead of deep fried, then coated with a unique and quick orange sauce (from kraftcanada.com). Add some Jasmine rice and veggies — perfect!
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- 1 medium onion, slivered
- 110 grams baby carrots, sliced thin diagonally
- 1 small red pepper, sliced thinly
- 1 'head' broccoli floweretes, sliced thin
- 110 grams fresh snow peas, timmed
- fresh gingerroot & garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 170 gram pkg (or 2-85 gm) Jell-O orange jelly powder
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/3 cup Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 tsp fresh gingerroot, minced
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup ice cold water
- 2 Tbsp veg oil
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 500 grams boneless/skinless chicken thighs OR breasts
- oil for frying chicken
Ingredients
Vegetables
Orange Sauce
Tempura Batter
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- Prepare vegetables & saute in 1/2 cup chicken broth ONLY until tender-crisp. Drain broth & reserve for sauce when vegtables are sauteed.
- In a small saucepan, combine dry jelly powder & cornstarch. Add broth, dressing, garlic & gingerroot; stir until jelly powder is dissolved. Add reserved broth from vegetables & cook until sauce is thickened, stirring frequently.
- Slice chicken into strips. In a small bowl, combine flour, cornstarch, baking soda & salt. In another small bowl, whisk egg with veg oil, soy sauce & ice water. Add to dry mixture, mixing only for a few seconds. Batter should be somewhat 'lumpy'.
- Heat oil on an electric griddle to a medium heat. Dip slices of chicken in tempura batter with a fork, draining off excess. Place on griddle & fry about 7 minutes or until cooked through. Drain on paper towels.
- Prepare Jasmine rice & place on a serving platter. Top with sauteed vegetables & chicken. Ladle orange sauce over vegetables & chicken. If you prefer, serve rice, veg, chicken & sauce all separately so everyone can make up there own combination.
- We always like quite a bit of sauce but if you don't, just make half a recipe of the orange sauce.
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