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Preppy Kitchen

Easy Air Fryer Orange Chicken

Crispy cubes of chicken get shatteringly crunchy in the air fryer, then tumble in a sticky, zesty orange sauce. It's a fast weeknight take on the takeout classic, finished with sesame seeds and green onions.

⏱ 40 min4Asianair fryerorange chickenchickentakeout copycatweeknight dinner

Ingredients

For the chicken

  • 1large egg · beaten
  • 1/4 teaspoonsalt
  • 1 poundboneless skinless chicken breast or thighs · cut into 1-inch cubes (450g)
  • 1 cupcornstarch or potato starch · 112g
  • —Non-aerosolized cooking spray · avocado or olive oil spray is great

For the orange sauce

  • 1/2 cupfresh orange juice · 120mL, about 2 oranges
  • 1/4 cupsoy sauce · 60mL
  • 1/4 cuppacked light brown sugar · 55g
  • 1 tablespoonrice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoonorange zest · about 2 oranges
  • 1 teaspoonminced fresh ginger
  • 1 teaspoontoasted sesame oil
  • 1/8 teaspoonred pepper flakes
  • 3garlic cloves · minced
  • 2 tablespoonswater
  • 1 tablespooncornstarch

For serving

  • —Sesame seeds
  • —Sliced green onions

Steps

  1. 1

    In a medium bowl, lightly beat the egg and salt together. Add the cubed chicken and stir to coat the chicken well.

  2. 2

    In a shallow bowl, add the cornstarch and stir to break up any large clumps. Working with a few pieces at a time, transfer the chicken to the cornstarch and toss until well coated. Coat only what will fit in your basket at one time.

  3. 3

    Preheat the air fryer to 400°F.

  4. 4

    Place the dredged chicken pieces in a single layer in the air fryer basket. Spray the chicken generously with cooking spray.

  5. 5

    Air fry for 6 minutes. Flip the chicken pieces and spray them with cooking spray again. Continue to air fry until golden and crispy, about 6 minutes more. Transfer the cooked chicken to a large bowl, then dredge and cook the remaining pieces.

  6. 6

    While the last batch of chicken cooks, combine the orange juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar, orange zest, ginger, sesame oil, red pepper flakes, and garlic in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until the sugar is dissolved.

  7. 7

    Dissolve the cornstarch in the water in a small bowl, then whisk it into the saucepan. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until thickened and translucent, about 1 minute.

  8. 8

    Pour the sauce over the chicken and toss to coat. Serve immediately, topped with sesame seeds and green onions.

Creator's notes

Developed to be fast, easy, and packed with citrus flavor — the air fryer gets the chicken unbelievably crispy without deep-frying.

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