Chinese Orange Chicken

About 3 months ago, I posted an oven cooked orange chicken recipe. The email responses to that post was just brilliant. I also had many of my loyal North American readers requesting for the recipe of this popular version of orange chicken, a Chinese take-out favorite. Here, I used dried tangerine peels to achieve the deep orange flavor for this recipe. It tasted so good that I had to do an encore for my kids the next day! :-) Dried tangerine peels are available from any Chinese Medicinal shops. Just look for the better grade ones, if possible. Have fun cooking this great tasting orange chicken!


Chinese Orange Chicken
(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients

350 g (2-3 pieces) Skinless and boneless Chicken Breast, cubed (about ¾-inch pieces)
1 Egg White
A pinch of White Pepper
2 tsp Soy Sauce
½ tsp Mei Kuei Lu (Chinese Rose wine)
3 Tbsp Corn Flour
8-10 Dried Red Chilies, cut into ½-inch pieces
18-20 g Ginger, peeled and chopped
3 Cloves Garlic, chopped
1 piece (about 2-inch) Dried Tangerine Peel, soaked in hot water for 20 minutes and finely chopped
3 Scallions, cut into ½-inch pieces
Peanut Oil for deep-frying

Sauce
100 ml Orange Juice
3 Tbsp Water
1 Tbsp Sugar
2 tsp Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp Dark Soy Sauce
½ tsp Mei Kuei Lu (Chinese Rose Wine)
1 tsp Chinese White Rice Vinegar
½ tsp Corn Flour

Method

Marinade the chicken pieces with egg white, pepper, soy sauce, rose wine and mix well, then coat the chicken with corn flour.



Combine the sauce ingredients in a small bowl; set aside.

Heat enough oil for deep-frying to 350-400˚F. (Medium to high heat) Add the chicken and deep-fry until it is crisp and golden, about 2 ½ to 3 minutes. (If you are deep-frying in a wok with a relatively small volume of oil, fry the chicken in batches.) Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon and set aside. Pour the oil into a heatproof container, and clean the wok if necessary.

Return the wok to a high heat with 2-3 Tbsp of the oil. Add the dried chilies and stir-fry briefly until they are fragrant and just changing color (do not burn them). Toss in the ginger, garlic and stir-fry for a few seconds more, then add the tangerine peel and stir-fry until the oil is fragrant.

Add the mixed ingredients for the sauce, stirring as it thickens. Tip in the chicken and stir vigorously to coat it in sauce. Add the scallions and stir a few times, switch off the heat, and serve.