Why is orange chicken so good?

It's all in the sauce! Orange sauce contains the perfect ratios of sweet, sour, and savory, which brightens up the chicken and gives it a kick. In fact, you can use the sauce on sautéd chicken, vegetables, or even rice!

Is orange chicken healthy?

Traditional orange chicken is contains battered and fried chicken that is covered in a sweet sauce. Because of this, it's not considered healthy. But, you can make a few tweaks to the recipe to make it a healthy dinner! Simple make your own homemade sauce with fresh orange juice, and bake the chicken instead of fry it!

Why is my sauce more brown than orange?

If your sauce turns out a little brown, that's perfectly OK! Coconut sugar tends to darken the sauce slightly. It will still look orange on the chicken and taste amazing!

Healthy Baked Orange Chicken

Name: Healthy Baked Orange Chicken
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Asian
Ingredients: 1 egg; 1 tablespoon coconut aminos or soy sauce; 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar; 1 ¼ teaspoon sea salt, divided; 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces; 2/3 cup all-purpose gluten free flour (or cassava flour); 2/3 cup arrowroot or cornstarch; Avocado oil spray*; Sliced green onions or sesame seeds, for garnish (optional); 1 recipe for Orange Chicken Sauce

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Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 12 reviews

Healthy Baked Orange Chicken

Sweet and tangy healthy orange chicken that’s easy to bake and better than takeout! The chicken is tossed in the best orange chicken sauce recipe. No frying, no mess, and it cooks up in under 30 minutes!

Prep: 15Cook: 30Total: 45 minutes

Servings: 6 1x

Ingredients

Chicken:

1 egg
1 tablespoon coconut aminos or soy sauce
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 ¼ teaspoon sea salt, divided
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
2/3 cup all-purpose gluten free flour (or cassava flour)
2/3 cup arrowroot or cornstarch
Avocado oil spray*
Sliced green onions or sesame seeds, for garnish (optional)

Orange Sauce:

1 recipe for Orange Chicken Sauce

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Instructions

Prep: Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spray or brush the parchment paper with avocado oil.
Make the Marinade: In a large bowl, whisk the egg, coconut aminos, apple cider vinegar, and 1/4 teaspoon of the sea salt. Add the chicken to the marinade and toss to coat.
Dredge the Chicken: In a medium bowl, whisk together the all purpose flour, arrowroot, and the remaining 1 teaspoon sea salt. Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and dredge them in the flour mixture. Gently shake off the excess flour and place the chicken on a baking sheet.
Bake: Liberally spray the top of the chicken with avocado oil until evenly coated. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and flip each piece over and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown.
Prepare the Sauce: While the chicken is baking, prepare the orange sauce. Toss the chicken with the orange sauce in a large bowl. Garnish with thinly sliced green onions or sesame seeds and serve over rice.

Notes

*You can use another oil spray or brush oil directly onto the pan and chicken pieces.
I’ve successfully used oat flour, all-purpose gluten free flour, cassava flour, and rice flour for the coating!
While you can use either chicken breasts or thighs, thighs work much better in this recipe as they stay moist and crisp up easily.
You’ll need 2 large baking pans for this recipe depending on size.

This recipe was updated April 26, 2023 to adjust volume of flours for the coating.

Recipe By: Noelle Tarr, NTP, CPT

Find it online: https://coconutsandkettlebells.com/healthy-orange-chicken/