Orange Chicken
Forty-two days ago I intentionally started eating to feel good. My goal? To feel full of energy, focus and balanced. As a beautifully wonderful and welcome side effect, I also felt a lightness—both physically and emotionally—that comes when you realize your mind is clear, your body is working with you (not against you) and you’re finally at peace with yourself. With my non-restrictive food choices, I shed whole body inflammation, resulting in improved digestion and excess weight loss.
This recipe was inspired by Genevieve Ko and ChihYu Smith of I Heart Umami, who I’m grateful for the inspiration, cooking wisdom and techniques—like velveting the chicken before cooking, which makes it super tender. This recipe also happens to be gluten-free, grain-free, paleo, soy-free, dairy-free, egg-free and refined sugar-free.
Though not typical of the orange chicken I’ve had at my local Chinese restaurant, I don’t see a need to deep-fry the chicken. I also like to stir in some steamed broccoli at the end though you can also serve the chicken with rice. I like to make the recipe with sliced chicken rather than chunks. If you prefer chunks of chicken, cut it into 1½-inch pieces. To making slicing the chicken into thin slices easier, I freeze it first, then cut on a diagonal as thin as possible, about ¼-inch thick.
Lastly, most orange chicken recipes call for dried orange peel. I didn’t see the need to do so, however, you can find dried orange peel or zest at Chinese grocers. You can also make your own by placing orange peel on a wire rack set on a baking sheet in a 275°F oven until mostly dry, about 45 minutes, or you can arrange orange peel in a single layer between paper towels and microwave on high in 20-second increments until brittle but not browned, about 60 seconds. Let the peel cool to room temperature, then finely chop. You’ll need about four 2-inch strips of orange peel, if using.
If you haven’t used coconut aminos yet, which are made by fermenting coconut palm sap with sea salt, I find them to be a healthier, gluten-free alternative to soy sauce with a low sugar load (only 1 gram per teaspoon), which won’t cause a rapid blood sugar spike. They also have antioxidant and antimicrobial properties, offer probiotics and enzymes (for gut health and to optimize digestion), contain a third less salt than soy sauce and are good for paleo, Whole30 and keto diets.
Until we eat again,
ORange chicken
To velvet the chicken, ChihYu first marinates it for 10 minutes with a little tapioca starch, oil, baking soda and salt. As she explains, the baking soda helps tenderize the chicken, the oil seals in the moisture to keep it tender and the starch forms a thin, crisp crust when pan-fried.
gluten-free ≈ dairy-free ≈ paleo ≈ Grain-free ≈ soy-free ≈ refined sugar-free ≈ egg-free
SERVES 4
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
INGREDIENTS
For the chicken:
1½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, thinly sliced on a diagonal about ¼-inch thick
1 tablespoon coconut aminos
2 tablespoons tapioca starch
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
For the orange sauce:
Zest of 1 orange, peel of 1 orange and juice of 2 oranges (½ cup), strained of pulp
3 tablespoons coconut aminos
2½ tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
2 cloves garlic, grated or finely chopped
2 teaspoons grated or finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
2 teaspoons tapioca starch
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
Steamed broccoli or rice, for serving, optional
Thinly sliced scallion greens, for serving, optional
Thinly sliced fresh red chile, for serving, optional
1 tablespoon olive oil, for cooking
DIRECTIONS
1. Marinate the chicken: In a medium bowl, toss together the chicken, coconut aminos, tapioca starch, baking soda, salt and oil until coated; refrigerate for 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, make the orange sauce: In a medium bowl, whisk together the orange zest and juice, coconut aminos, vinegar, garlic, ginger, tapioca, salt and crushed red pepper.
3. Cook the chicken: In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat and swirl to coat. Add the chicken and pan-fry, tossing occasionally, until cooked through and golden brown, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate or bowl. Rinse and dry the skillet.
4. Heat the orange sauce: Add the orange sauce to the skillet and bring to a boil, stirring, until reduced and thickened, about 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium, add the chicken, orange peel and broccoli, if using, and stir to coat. Serve with the scallions and chiles, if using.
QUICK RECIPE SWAPS
coconut aminos → gluten-free tamari
rice vinegar → apple cider vinegar
olive oil → your oil of choice
crushed red pepper flakes → whole red chiles
