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If you love Chinese food but can’t eat gluten, this recipe will be the next best thing. Dare I say, I think my gluten-free orange chicken recipe just might be better than Chinese takeout! This post contains affiliate links. Please read my disclosures.
One of my favorite food groups is Chinese food 😉, and unfortunately, in my experience, good gluten-free Chinese food is hard to find.
There are a few national chains that make gluten-free Chinese-style dishes, such as Pei Wei and PF Chang’s, and there are often several local restaurants that do gluten free well, too.
However, because these restaurants are hard to find and few and far between, I have found myself in the kitchen trying to replicate some of my favorite Chinese food dishes.
One recipe I love making (and eating) is my gluten-free fried rice recipe. It is perfect!
And today I’m sharing my gluten-free orange chicken recipe with you so you can feed those Chinese cravings once and for all.
Orange chicken is a personal favorite of mine and one I would order at every Chinese restaurant if I could. Unfortunately, most Chinese restaurants don’t offer gluten-free orange chicken on their menus.
This is a recipe I have made so many times that I can’t keep track. I crave Chinese food often, and my kids love this recipe, so it’s in regular rotation around here.
It’s just taken me a while to get the recipe on my blog – but better late than never!
How to Make
Let’s get right to it because the sooner you learn how to make gluten-free orange chicken, the sooner it gets in your belly.
The first step is to prepare your chicken. You’ll want to cut up about 1.5 lbs of chicken breasts or tenderloins into small, bite-sized pieces. Have the chicken cut and ready before moving on to the next steps.
Heat 1/4 cup of high-heat cooking oil, like avocado oil, in a large non-stick pan. Learn more about how to choose the right oil for the right cooking style in this article.
Once the oil is hot, dip each piece of chicken in the cornstarch (mixed with salt and pepper). Shake off excess cornstarch and place each chicken bite into the hot oil.
As the pieces begin to lightly brown, stir the chicken to allow it to cook on each of its sides.
While the chicken is cooking, you can begin to prepare your orange sauce.
To do this, combine the following ingredients in a small bowl:
- 1/4 cup tamari or gluten-free soy sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- Zest and juice of one orange (Tip! Zest the orange before juicing it)
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
- 1 tablespoon of cornstarch
Mix all the sauce ingredients together until the cornstarch is completely dissolved and set aside.
Once the chicken is cooked through, about 8-10 minutes, pour the sauce over the chicken and allow it to sizzle in the pan as the sauce quickly thickens.
Remove from the heat and serve topped with sesame seeds and/or chopped green onions. Serve over rice.
Homemade Chinese Food that Tastes Amazing?
I know eating gluten free often leaves you feeling deprived of your favorite foods… but now that you know how to make gluten-free orange chicken, I hope you’re feeling a little more optimistic about the future.
You’ll taste the sweetness from the orange and brown sugar and the subtle spice from the red pepper flakes.
The chicken is crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside.
Overall, this gluten-free orange chicken recipe makes one satisfying dish that tastes like you remember it tasting at your favorite Chinese restaurant before you stopped eating gluten. Enjoy!
More Asian-Inspired Recipes
Also, try these Asian-inspired recipes:
- Gluten-Free Sesame Chicken
- Easy Gluten-Free Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Gluten-Free Fried Rice
- Teriyaki Chicken Bowls
- Deconstructed Egg Rolls
Gluten-Free Orange Chicken
This gluten-free orange chicken recipe tastes like Chinese take-out yet is made at home with simple, clean ingredients readily available in your pantry.
4.20 from 15 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Asian
Keyword: chinese chicken recipe, gluten-free orange chicken, honey orange chicken
Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes minutes
Servings: 6 people
Calories: 285kcal
Author: Jenny Levine Finke
Equipment
Large non-stick pan
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup avocado oil or other high heat cooking oil
- 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenderloins cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Orange Sauce:
- 1/4 cup tamari or any gluten-free soy sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice juice of one orange
- 1 Tbsp orange zest zest of one orange
- 2 Tbsp white wine vinegar
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- 2 garlic cloves minced, more if desired
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes optional
- 1 Tbsp cornstarch
Instructions
Heat oil in a non-stick pan over medium-high heat.
Combine cornstarch with salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Coat each piece of chicken in cornstarch mixture. Shake off excess cornstarch from each chicken piece and place into hot oil.
Allow chicken to cook for 2 minutes before turning to cook the additional sides. Continue to cook mixture until chicken is evenly browned on all sides and chicken is cooked through, about 8-10 minutes.
While chicken is cooking, combine all sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside.
Once chicken is cooked, lower heat to medium and add sauce. Sauce will bubble and thicken. Continue to cook for 1 minute until sauce is thickened and each piece of chicken is coated. Remove from heat.
Serve orange chicken over rice and topped with sesame seeds and/or chopped green onions (optional).
Notes
You can have fun with this chicken by trying different variations: (1) Instead of orange juice and zest, use the juice and zest of 1 lemon instead, or (2)Swap brown sugar for 2 Tbsp of apricot preserves
If sauce is too thick, add more water (1/4 cup at a time), and continue to cook mixture over medium-high heat until sauce is to desired thickness. Sometimes the sauce can get too thick if there’s too much cornstarch.
Like it spicy? Add more red pepper flakes. Don’t want the spice? Omit the red pepper flakes.
Nutrition
Calories: 285kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 1064mg | Potassium: 461mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 79IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 13mg | Iron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @GoodForYouGlutenFree or tag #goodforyouglutenfree!
