Air Fryer Orange Chicken
This crispy air fryer orange chicken is full of flavor and so easy to make. It’s naturally gluten free, dairy free, and refined sugar free. Ready in about 40 minutes, it’s the perfect quick and tasty meal for any day of the week.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken breast cut into 1 inch cubes
- 1 tablespoon low sodium tamari or soy sauce for marinade
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch for coating
- 3 tablespoons plain gluten free breadcrumbs
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger or ½ teaspoon dried
- 1 tablespoon oil for cooking garlic and ginger
- 1 cup orange juice fresh or store-bought
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 0.25 cup honey can adjust sweetness
- 0.25 cup low sodium tamari or soy sauce for sauce base
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 2-3 teaspoons sriracha or to taste
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with water to thicken
- 2 tablespoons water for cornstarch slurry
Instructions
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix the chicken cubes, tamari or soy sauce, and cornstarch till the chicken’s evenly coated. This step's super important for that crispy texture later.
- Add in those gluten free breadcrumbs and toss it all up. Make sure every piece is covered well.
- Preheat your air fryer to 400°F (200°C) for about 5 minutes. This gets it hot and ready for that crisp.
- Place the coated chicken pieces in the air fryer basket. Don’t crowd ‘em, work in batches if you gotta.
- Air fry the chicken for 10-12 minutes. Shake the basket about halfway so everything cooks equally and gets golden.
- While that’s happening, get your sauce started. Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Toss in minced garlic and grated ginger, sauté it for 1-2 minutes ‘til it smells dang good.
- Add orange juice, orange zest, and honey to the saucepan. Stir it up and let it simmer 5-7 minutes till it thickens just right.
- Whisk together the cornstarch and water and add to the pot with the sauce. Whisk together and let simmer until thick. Remove from the heat and let cool which will help it thicken further.
- When the chicken is done (be sure to cut into the largest piece to ensure it is cooked all the way through) add to a bowl and cool for just a couple of minutes.
- Pour half of the sauce on top and toss to combine. This recipe makes quite a bit of sauce, I like to add probably ⅔ of it to the chicken, then reserve the rest for serving.
- Serve immediately with steamed broccoli, rice or enjoy as is!
Notes
If you’re using full strength soy sauce, you’ll want to cut it back to about 2-3 tablespoons so it isn’t too strong. You can sub the honey with any other sweetener of choice. This recipe is not as sweet as traditional orange chicken from a restaurant, so feel free to add more sweetener to taste as needed.