Crispy Orange Chicken (Panda Express Copycat)

Tender chunks of white meat chicken with crispy breading and a sweet, tangy glaze — learn how to make the famous Panda Express Orange Chicken at home!

crispy orange chicken on a plate with orange slices

Panda Express Orange Chicken

I might avoid fried foods most of the time, but keeping it real, I love me some crispy orange chicken!! It’s definitely one of my favorite “guilty” pleasures.

There’s just something so satisfying about those soft pillows of chicken breast enveloped in crispy batter and dripping with sticky sweet orange glaze. My mouth is watering just talking about it!

I couldn’t believe that it was this easy to recreate this takeout dish in my own kitchen! All you do is mix up the sauce (just 5 simple ingredients), coat the chicken in a light breading and fry the pieces, then toss everything together in a skillet.

With this easy copycat recipe, you can enjoy Panda Express’ signature dish at home — in about 30 minutes!

Related: Try our Copycat Bang Bang Shrimp recipe too!

Panda Express Orange Chicken on plate with chopsticks

Ingredients

I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience in re-creating this recipe; disclosure policy available here.

  • Boneless & skinless chicken breast, chopped
  • Egg
  • Salt & Pepper
  • Vegetable Oil (or your favorite cooking oil)
  • Cornstarch
  • All purpose flour
  • Ginger root, minced
  • Garlic, minced
  • Red chili pepper flakes
  • Green onion, chopped
  • Mirin (sweet rice cooking wine)
  • Water
  • Sesame oil

For the Orange Sauce:

  • 1 1⁄2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 1⁄2 tablespoons water
  • 5 tablespoons sugar
  • 5 tablespoons white vinegar
  • zest of 1 orange

To Make the Sauce: Add all sauce ingredients to a medium mixing bowl. Whisk together until well-combined. Sauce may be stored in the fridge for up to a week.

Helpful Kitchen Tools

crispy orange chicken on plate with chopsticks

Instructions

To prep, line up two small mixing bowls on your counter. These will be used to coat your chicken pieces.

What to put in each bowl:

  • Bowl 1: Mix together 1 egg, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper and 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil.
  • Bowl 2: Whisk together 1/2 cup corn starch and 1/4 cup flour.

To Make the Fried Chicken

  1. Heat about 3 cups of oil in a deep-fryer or large frying pot to 375 degrees.
  2. While the oil heats, chop your boneless and skinless chicken into bite-size pieces.
  3. Dip each chicken piece first into the bowl of in the egg mixture, then roll each piece in the bowl of dry cornstarch mixture until lightly coated.
  4. Place chicken pieces into the fryer or pot of hot oil for 3 to 4 minutes. When chicken turns a golden brown, remove from the fryer and place on a paper towel lined plate to dry.

TIP: Fry chicken in small batches to prevent lowering the oil temperature.

To Cook the Orange Chicken

  1. In a small bowl, dissolve 1 tablespoon cornstarch in 1/4 cup water. Set aside.
  2. Add oil, ginger root, and garlic to a large wok or skillet and stir fry for about 1 minute, stirring constantly.
  3. Stir in chili peppers and green onions.
  4. Add rice wine (mirin) and stir to combine for less than a minute.
  5. Add orange sauce to wok and bring mixture to a boil.
  6. Add fried chicken pieces  and stir until coated in sauce.
  7. Stir in the small bowl of water/corn starch mixture and continue stirring until sauce thickens.
  8. Add sesame oil and stir until all ingredients are well incorporated and chicken is coated in a rich, thick orange sauce.

Best enjoyed warm.

We love to serve our orange chicken on a bed of fluffy jasmine rice with a side of broccoli. Try our tasty Broccoli with Garlic sauce recipe!

close up of fried orange chicken

Frequently Asked Questions

Can You Use Dark Meat Chicken?

Panda Express uses chicken thighs to make their orange chicken dish. So while we used white meat chicken in this recipe, you could absolutely use dark meat instead.

One of the benefits of using white meat is that it cooks faster, so you can get dinner on the table quickly. If using dark meat, you’ll want to cook a tad longer — about 5-7 minutes for dark meat instead of 3-4 minutes for white meat.

Can You Use Pre-Made Orange Sauce?

As of the time I wrote this post, Panda Express actually sells their own orange sauce at grocery stores. Oddly, it has very mixed reviews, so if you have a couple extra minutes I recommend making your own sauce with the recipe here.

It’s actually very quick and only uses a few ingredients. Since they are real food ingredients, it will taste better! (Sometimes packaged sauces have additives and preservatives which can affect flavor).

 

Panda Express Orange Chicken Recipe (Printable Copy)

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crispy orange chicken on a plate with orange slices
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5 from 1 vote

Panda Express Orange Chicken (Copycat Recipe)

Tender chunks of white meat chicken with crispy breading and a sweet, tangy glaze — learn how to make the famous Panda Express Orange Chicken at home!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time40 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Chinese
Keyword: chicken, fried chicken, orange, Panda Express
Servings: 4
Calories: 408kcal
Author: Stacey aka the Soccer Mom
Cost: $12

Equipment

  • Wok or large Saute Pan
  • Deep Fryer or Large Pot of Oil for frying
  • 2 Mixing bowls

Ingredients

For the Orange Sauce:

Instructions

To prepare the chicken:

  • Mix together egg, salt, pepper and 2 TB vegetable oil in a medium bowl and set aside.
  • In a separate medium sized bowl, add 1/2 cup corn starch and 1/4 cup flour and whisk together. Set aside.
  • Heat about 3 cups oil in a deep-fryer or large frying pot to 375 degrees. The amount of oil may vary based on your fryer or pot.
  • Chop your boneless and skinless chicken into bite-sized chunks. Dip chicken pieces in the egg mixture, roll in the corn starch mixture until lightly coated, and place in your fryer for 3 to 4 minutes.
  • When chicken turns a golden brown, remove from the fryer and place on a paper towel lined plate.
  • Fry chicken in small batches to prevent lowering the oil temperature.

To Make the Orange Sauce:

  • Whisk together sauce ingredients in a small bowl until well combined.

Put it all together:

  • In a small bowl, dissolve 1 tablespoon cornstarch in 1/4 cup water. Set aside.
  • Using a wok or large skillet add oil, ginger root, and garlic to a large wok or skillet and stir fry for about 1 minute, stirring constantly.
  • Stir in chili peppers and green onions.
  • Add rice wine and stir to combine for less than a minute.
  • Add orange sauce to wok and bring mixture to a boil.
  • Add fried chicken pieces  and stir until coated in sauce.
  • Stir in your small bowl of water/corn starch mixture and continue stirring until sauce thickens.
  • Add sesame oil and stir until all ingredients are well incorporated and chicken is coated in a rich, thick orange sauce.
  • Best enjoyed warm.

Notes

Nutrition information is an estimate only and will vary based on exact ingredients used and serving size.

Nutrition

Calories: 408kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 49g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 186mg | Sodium: 1470mg | Potassium: 854mg | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 125IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 18mg | Iron: 1mg

Be sure to pin this recipe on Pinterest:

2 photo collage of copycat Panda Express Orange Chicken

More of our favorite Asian-inspired recipes:

An easy and authentic Pad Thai noodle recipe to make your favorite take-out dish at home.

Homemade Authentic Pad Thai

Simple & sweet, with just the right amount of crispy -- once you see how easy these "famous" roasted Brussels Sprouts are to make, they will be your new favorite side dish!

“Famous” Asian Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Stacey aka the Soccer Mom
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