Panda Express Copycat Orange Chicken

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This Panda Express Orange Chicken copycat is ready in minutes. Enjoy the bright, fresh orange sauce and crispy chicken in this easy recipe that’s healthier than the original!

orange chicken on plate

You know how sometimes a brand name becomes synonymous with the product it makes? Think Kleenex or Xerox. We love Panda Express, and it automatically means “Orange Chicken” when we hear it. The conversation has become shorthand: “Wanna Panda?” is all that needs to be said.

Recently, I wanted some Orange Chicken but didn’t want to: load the kids in the car in the rain, drive to Panda Express, unload the kids, wait in line (juggling a wiggly toddler saying, “Down!” the whole time), load the kids back in the car, load the food in the car, return home.

Can ya blame me?

Besides, why pay for something you can make? Let’s do this.

Panda Express copycat orange chicken

This homemade Orange Chicken contains only fresh, real ingredients, without any of the MSG or corn syrup that may be in the fast-food version.

Homemade Orange Chicken

Inspired by Martin Yan’s Orange Beef

Ingredients

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 tablespoons butter or coconut oil (buy my favorite coconut oil here)

1/2 cup orange juice

zest of 1 orange

3 Tablespoons oyster sauce

2 Tablespoons honey

2 teaspoons minced ginger

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

Instructions

Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces. I prefer to do this while the chicken is partially thawed, since that makes it easier to cut.

Heat the butter/oil in a large pan until shimmering. Add half of the chicken (it’s OK if they’re still partly frozen when you put them in) and cook until nicely browned.

Don’t put all the chicken in at once because the pan will get crowded, it won’t stay hot enough, and you won’t end up with the tasty browned bits of chicken deliciousness.

chicken cooking in pan

Take the first half out and set it on a towel while you cook up the second half. I put the chicken on a towel instead of a plate because the towel will absorb any condensation, preventing sogginess.

While the chicken is cooking, prep the sauce. Mix the orange juice, orange zest, oyster sauce, honey, ginger, and red pepper flakes, if using, in a measuring cup. The honey will probably stay in a big lump in the measuring cup, but it’ll melt in the pan.

Take out the second batch of chicken and blot the excess oil out of the pan with a paper towel. Leave the crunchy browned bits in.

blotting oil from pan

Pour the sauce into the pan, making sure the honey comes along for the ride, and scrape up all those yummy browned bits.

orange chicken sauce cooking in pan

You’ll know the sauce is the right thickness when your spatula leaves a little blank trail behind it.

orange chicken sauce cooking

Toss in your chicken and heat it through. Serve with steamed rice or loaded fried rice.

Panda Express orange chicken copycat

Kitchen Tips

I like to make a big batch of Orange Chicken sauce and freeze it in these canning jars. Then I can pour the sauce over store-bought chicken strips, make some rice, and dinner is done! BOOM.

Love this recipe? Then you’ll love the healthy copycat recipes in Better Than A Box. This fantastic ebook contains more than 50 recipes for your favorite packaged foods, made healthy and from-scratch.

homemade copycat recipes

Plus it teaches you how to remake boxed foods so they’re healthy and natural! Our family’s favorite recipes from Better Than A Box are Homemade French Onion Dip and Dad’s Cheeseburger Helper. YUM.

closeup of orange chicken on wooden bowl with chopsticks

Incredible Homemade Orange Chicken

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes

Faster and healthier than takeout–this delicious, homemade orange chicken recipe is ready in minutes, and is better than Panda Express!

Ingredients

  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 1/2 cup orange juice
  • zest of 1 orange
  • 3 Tablespoons oyster sauce
  • 2 Tablespoons honey
  • 2 teaspoons minced ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional

Instructions

  1. Cube the chicken into bite-sized pieces. I prefer to do this while the chicken is partially thawed, since that makes it easier to cut.
  2. Heat the butter/oil in a large pan until shimmering. Add half of the chicken (it's OK if they're still partly frozen when you put them in) and cook until nicely browned.
  3. Don't put all the chicken in at once because the pan will get crowded, it won't stay hot enough, and you won't end up with the tasty browned bits of chicken deliciousness.
  4. Take the first half out and set it on a towel while you cook up the second half. I put the chicken on a towel instead of a plate because the towel will absorb any condensation, preventing sogginess.
  5. While the chicken is cooking, prep the sauce. Mix the orange juice, orange zest, oyster sauce, honey, ginger, and red pepper flakes, if using, in a measuring cup. The honey will probably stay in a big lump in the measuring cup, but it'll melt in the pan.
  6. Take out the second batch of chicken and blot the excess oil out of the pan with a paper towel. Leave the crunchy browned bits in.
  7. Pour the sauce into the pan, making sure the honey comes along for the ride, and scrape up all those yummy browned bits.
  8. You'll know the sauce is the right thickness when your spatula leaves a little blank trail behind it.
  9. Toss in your chicken and heat it through. Serve with rice or noodles.

Notes

I like to make a big batch of Orange Chicken sauce and freeze it in these canning jars. Then I can pour the sauce over store-bought chicken strips, make some rice, and dinner is done! BOOM.

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homemade orange chicken

Hi, Im Pam!

I created Brown Thumb Mama to share my natural living journey, and help you live a greener life. Thanks for being here!

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103 thoughts on -Panda Express Copycat Orange Chicken-

  1. It seems like the older recipe you had posted had some coating on the chicken, like baking soda or something, am I wrong?

  2. I agree with Cindy. Would love to see a printable recipe option. There are plenty of great WordPress plug-ins that allow you to print. I use Recipe Card but Zip List is also very popular.

  3. I made this tonight and it was amazing, especially considering how easy it was. I added siracha as well as onion, carrot, and red pepper. Everyone loved it! Way better then takeout!

  4. Okay I have been wanting to try this for a while and I have a huge hankering for chinese tonight. I finally found some gluten free hoisin sauce that I will substitute, and I also found this oyster sauce substitute recipe: “Gluten Free Oyster Sauce”
    3 tablespoons gluten-free soy sauce
    1 tablespoon rice vinegar
    1 tablespoon light brown sugar
    1 tablespoon cornstarch (just mix)

    I may just have to make this recipe twice to see which works best!

  5. Made this tonight and it came out great.. My g/f is vegan, so I actually made two batches in two pans, one with real chicken, one with a “chick’n” substitute. Both came out great. If you whisk all the sauce ingredients together in the measuring cup, you’ll have no problem with the honey sticking anywhere. Also, by happy coincidence, the honey in my cabinet is Tangelo Orange flavored, which I think probably added to the wonderful taste.

  6. Great recipe! Tried it last night and my family loved it! I also sautéed some veggies with some of the extra orange sauce that I made. Very good!

  7. Made this tonight. Used lemon and lemon zest with 1/2 OJ. Toss the chicken with cornstarch first. Extra ginger and thicken with cornstarch and juiced. Added bok choy and peapods. Delicious!!!!!

  8. My kids love orange chicken from panda express. I am definitely trying this one this week. You can also try coating the chicken first with flour and cornstarch before frying them.

  9. I just tried this recipe and it was wonderful. I used imported soy sauce instead of oyster sauce, added much more zest, and some chopped shitaki mushrooms to the mix. Over steamed rice with a side of dumpling boiled in shitaki broth. It was a big hit in my household!

  10. Made this tonight. Very tasty…but, my sauce didn’t thicken. Should I use cornstarch or arrowroot next time? 🙂

  11. I made this tonight! It had a VERY strong orange flavor. Other wise it was delicious and very easy to make.

  12. Just made this for dinner tonight. My husband says it taste good but my sauce didn’t get think. Any thoughts?

  13. Avatar photo
    Bartini Bollinger

    This looks so good but has anyone tried this with lemon juice for lemon chicken? I don’t always have orange juice in the house but lemon juice is usually available because I use it in my baking and jam-making.

  14. This isn’t very helpful, it doesn’t say how long the sauce should be on or at the very least what temp to prepare it at. Mine won’t thinken and I followed the recipe as closely as it allowed

  15. Pam, this sauce is so good! I used it on some greens sauteed with onions and garlic today (with a little Sriracha, of course), and it was perfect.

  16. I’m kind of late to the party here, but I made this with my 7 year old tonight and she said it’s AWESOME. 😉 Thanks for a great recipe!

  17. Can you leave the oyster sauce out, can you replace it with something else? The ingredients in that include MSG, sugar, modified corn starch and wheat flour.. unless I’m looking at the wrong brands.

  18. I made this last night with grapefruit juice… it was so good! As my 7 year old said “I want to eat this forever!”

  19. Love your recipes. Would you consider adding a print option for those of us still addicted to having a piece of paper in our hands to read and follow while we cook? 🙂

  20. I live in Eastern Europe…and my little store doesn’t carry oyster or hoisin or fish sauce. (If it does, it is written in Russian or Georgian, and I cannot read either! 🙂 Can substitute something for those sauces? Thank you!

  21. Found you through SITS. I was sure that Orange Chicken was made with a ton of sugar. Good to know that the ingredients are what you have here. Not only will I cook it at home (because my family loves it) but, I will let them have it at Panda. Thanks for the recipe.

    1. I am sure that the Panda version is full of sugar and all manner of low-quality ingredients – but this homemade version is definitely healthier.

  22. Looks so good! Thanks so much for sharing at the party!! Do drop by again for another or anytime you like. Have a great weekend. Theresa @DearCreatives

  23. Ohhhh this looks so yummy!!!

    Thanks so much for sharing this at our “Best Of The Weekend party”! I have pinned this to our party board and another big board too. We hope to see you again when the party kicks off Friday eve at 8PM EST.
    Have a great week!
    Xoxo

  24. Mmm… This looks and sounds soo good, that I’m sure we’ll be trying it before the week is out!! Thank you so much for linking up with us at One Sharendipity Place!!

    Sue @ thet2women.com

  25. I am so going to have to make this for my husband. He will ONLY eat Orange Chicken at Panda, but it always makes me worry about the contents of it, health-wise. Thanks for the recipe!
    xoxo
    Michelle @ Ya Gotta Have a Hobby

  26. Yes! I’ve been waiting for this recipe! THANK YOU! & thanks for linking with us this weekend at One Sharendipity Place. Have a great weekend !

    Sue @ TheT2women.com

  27. Great share. Not only did you save the trip but you probably made it a lot healthier too. I am pinning this one for dinner one night. I am not sure about Oyster Sauce. Is it in with the other Asian ingredients usually? Thanks for sharing at What’d You Do This Weekend.

    1. I must have done something wrong because my orange chicken was not very good. I tasted too “orangey.” I followed the steps exactly so I’m not sure where my mistake was.

      1. I made this the other day and mine wasn’t too orangey, but mine was super, super liquidy and never thickened like real Panda Express Orange Chicken. I think if I ever wanted to make orange chicken again I would find a different recipe.

  28. I found you through I Made It! Monday…and I’m making this tonight! Thank you for sharing, I can’t wait to try it! 🙂 –Fran

  29. This looks really good! I love recipes from restaurants that I can make at home! I would love to have you stop by and link it up to our party!

    Britney @ The Princess & Her Cowboys {dot} com

  30. I’ve been wanting to make a homemade version of Orange Chicken and your recipe sure makes it looks easy. Thanks for sharing it. Blessings, D@TheShadyPorch

  31. OH WOW!

    I would love for you to share and link up at my weekly TGIF Link Party if you haven’t already this week. Your favorite posts, most popular, recent or new! The party is open every Thursday night and closes Wednesday’s at midnight. Followed by (Not SO) Wordless Wednesday! http://apeekintomyparadise.blogspot.com/. I would be honored if you join us! Have a wonderful week!

    Hugs, Cathy

  32. Oh wow, that looks so delicious! We love Panda Express too, so I’m especially happy to find this recipe. I pinned it and can’t wait to try it!

    I’d like to invite you to share this post and up to two others at our From the Farm Blog Hop, which is live right now. Your style of blog posts would fit right in with the wonderful posts that are shared!

        1. Does oyster sauce smell/taste oysterie? The sound of oyster sauce sounds gross. I think I will try the hoisin sauce instead. 🙂

      1. I would NOT substitute fish sauce. It has an extremely strong flavor that is completely different from Oyster Sauce. A very small amount goes a long way and 3TBS of it in this dish would ruin it. Hoisin will work!

  33. Just so you know – I pinned this twice! I have to try this. I tried another orange chicken recipe which turned out to be a lot of work. This looks so much easier.

    Thanks for sharing your yummy recipe at Fabulously Frugal Thursday!

  34. Just love your Orange Chicken, we will really enjoy it! Hope you have a fantastic week and thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
    Come Back Soon!
    Miz Helen

  35. As for certain words and meanings, when my older sister said “Do You Want to go to Africa,” it meant a trip to 7-11 and a delicious, old fashioned, cola slurpee. This was back in the day when there was only one drink called a slurpee, and the slurpee machine at your local 7-11 had but two choices: Cherry or Coke.

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