Friday, March 26, 2010

Orange Chicken


Have a go at making this fantastic tasting Orange Chicken recipe. A cinch to make, marinate it and roast it in the oven. Can’t get any easier, right? Bet you will love the taste of this chicken, slightly tangy, juicy, tender, spicy, and the right amount of sweetness from the orange juice and fragrance from the orange zest. So, do try the recipe and enjoy!


Orange Chicken
(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients

8 Pieces Chicken Drumsticks

Marinate Sauce
8 Tbsp Orange Juice (from 1 large-sized orange)
1 ½ tsp Orange Zest (from 1 large-sized orange)
2 tsp Minced Ginger
1 Clove of Garlic, minced
2 Stalks Scallions, finely sliced
1 Tbsp Chili Flakes
¼ tsp Sea Salt
1 Tbsp Sugar
1 Tbsp Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp Dark Soy Sauce (Caramel Soy Sauce, if available)
½ tsp Mei Kuei Lu (Chinese Rose wine)
1 tsp Chinese White Rice Vinegar
½ tsp Sesame Oil
2 Tbsp Peanut Oil

Method

Rinse the chicken pieces and pat dry.



In a medium bowl, whisk together the orange juice, orange zest, ginger, garlic, scallions, chili flakes, sugar, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, rose wine, vinegar, sesame oil, and peanut oil. Mix well. Set aside half of the mixture, and pour the remainder over the chicken.



Place the chicken in the refrigerator and marinate for 4 to 5 hours, turning pieces every hour.



Preheat the oven to 400˚F.

Remove the chicken from the marinade, place in a roasting pan, and roast, turning to brown on all sides. Spoon the reserved marinate mixture over the chicken as it roasts. Test for doneness by piercing with a knife; chicken will be done when juices run clear and the meat is tender, about 45 minutes.

24 comments :

  1. very nice color....beautiful drumsticks

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  2. Ooooh...I love that sticky look...so finger-licking good...mmm.

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  3. This orange chicken sounds to die for!!!

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  4. I love the deep color of this dish-so beautiful. I'm copying this recipe to make for my parents this week-my Mom will love this...

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  5. I am s happy I signed up t receive it via e-mail. It lo0ks s good. I just have to make this for dinner tomorrow. I love trying new recipes (especially ones my family won't dread eating...lol)

    Thanks

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  6. Oh, man!! This looks absolutely fantastic. I love that you used drumsticks instead of chopped chicken pieces. I must try out this recipe! What lovely photos!

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  7. Yummy, sweet and sticky orange chicken. Can I omit the Mei Kuei Lu???

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  8. @Quinn: The Mei Kuei Lu will provide extra fragrance to the dish but you can omit it.

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  9. It looks so saucy good!This is sending my taste buds into a whirl of delight!

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  10. Hello Angie! Stopping by for the first time to your wonderful place here. I have only just begun to look around and already saw so many delicious posts! I'll be back often!

    Kindly, ldh

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  11. This looks sweet, sticky, and delicious!

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  12. My husband loves chicken legs. The deep color of the sauce looks absolutely mouth watering!

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  13. Oh my God, this looks SO good! I have to have to try. I wish I could just reach out and grab a drumstick!

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  14. Chicken and orange goes really great together. I can feel my mouth is watering.

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  15. Va voom... this looks mahogany delicious... great combination of flavors that I can't wait to make... thanks!!!

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  16. Hey, I'm thinking of making this recipe sometime soon as it sounds really delicious. Can I substitute chinese shao xing wine for rose wine? Also what if I use no added sugar orange juice instead of fresh orange juice? Is that still ok or is fresh orange juice better? I'll still include the orange zest of course. Also I have both caramel soy sauce and kecap manis sauce for the dark soy sauce. Is caramel sauce better for this recipe? And just another quick question, is 45 mins at 400 degrees F enough to brown the chicken i.e 8 drumsticks and make it slightly crispy on the outside but juicy and tender on the inside? Cos i don't want to overcook them. Thanks if u can reply asap...sorry for bugging u with too many questions...just wanna make sure it turns out perfect.

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  17. @Lilian: No worries. 1. Yes, you can subs with shao xing wine and packet orange juice. 2. Caramel Soy Sauce is good enough. 3. Do check the chicken doneness after 40 minutes as different oven the temps might vary. I am sure you can crank up the temperature slightly if you want the chicken to be slightly crispy. Hope the chicken turns out great for you. Thanks.

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  18. I made these and they turned out to be delicious. The chicken wasn't crispy but was tender and moist. However they didn't look as caramelized and brown as yours but nevertheless they were still a goldeny-dark brown. I basted really often with the accumulated juices and reserved marinade which I think helped to develop the flavour. I also marinated the chicken drumsticks overnight with caramel sauce and shao xing wine but I omitted the chili flakes. I also added a tad more wine and more garlic, ginger and scallions.

    My dad really liked them especially the gravy which went well with rice. I also cranked up the temp to about 250 degrees after about 45 minutes for another 10 minutes or so. Thanks for a good recipe.

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  19. I made this last night and it was fantastic! I did some substituting, regular soy sauce for the dark and skipped the rose wine, but it turned out great. Thanks for the recipe!

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  20. I'm making these again. Could i grill them under the broiler for about 5-10 mins per side to get the crispy charred effect after about 40 mins roasting? I'll brush some marinade onto them during the grilling.

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  21. @Lilian: Sounds good but I'm not sure whether the chicken will be crispier though. Await your feedback and thanks :D

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  22. Ok, if i were to use 4 drumsticks and 4 thighs (basically 4 quarter chicken legs) how long should i roast them for? About 1 hour to 1 hr 15 minutes? I think the rule for roasting chicken is like 1 hour for a 2 1/2 pound chicken. Don't want to overcook the chicken.

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