I was talking to my grandma the other day, and she mentioned that my brother had brought her and grandpa orange chicken from Panda Express.
and that was it. I needed some.
I've made lemon chicken a few times in the slow cooker, and was impressed with the results. I tested out the same recipe with orange juice instead of lemonade, and guess what? Instant orange sauce, without ingesting tons of deep-fried grease or a drop of gluten. Yay!
The Ingredients.
1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken, cut in 2-inch chunks
1/2 cup flour (I used Pamela's Baking Mix)
olive oil, for browning the chicken
1 tablespoon kosher salt
6 ounces (1/2 can) frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed (I'd opt for little-to-no pulp. The pulp can taste a bit bitter when cooked)
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons ketchup
updated 9/20/09: I've heard from a few readers that 1 tablespoon of salt is too much. If you are using iodized or table salt, this will be the case. Kosher salt doesn't taste as "salty" as regular salt, and since the granules are larger, you don't get as much in the tablespoon as you would with regular salt. Adjust accordingly. xoxo steph
The Directions.
Use a 4 quart slow cooker for best results. Dredge the chicken pieces with the flour, and shake off the excess. Go ahead and throw away any remaining flour, we won't need it. Heat olive oil in a large skillet on the stove and brown the chicken on all sides. There is no need to fully cook it, just sear it enough for the flour to stick and get a nice coating.
Plop the chicken pieces into your slow cooker. In a small mixing bowl, combine the orange juice concentrate, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, salt, and ketchup. Taste. If you'd like the chicken to be a bit sweeter, add a touch more sugar. Pour sauce mixture evenly over the chicken, and toss gingerly to coat.
Cover and cook on low for 6 hours, or on high for 3 to 4. Serve over white or brown rice.
The Verdict.
Delicious. All four of us had seconds. Like I did with the lemon chicken, I sprinkled some red pepper flakes onto my portion, because I like a bit of heat. Everyone else at the table ate it as-is, and was quite happy.
other great take out fake out dishes:
Mongolian Beef
Broccoli Beef
Chow Mein
Fried Rice
and for dessert: super soft gluten free sugar cookies
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