One-pot orange chicken served over steamed rice and with a touch of sriracha for heat. Fast and easy in your pressure cooker, it’s the perfect weeknight dinner.
This easy one pot orange pot chicken recipe can be put together in only 45 minutes. It’s all done in one pot, making the whole thing a breeze, and is one of our favorite cheap Instant Pot recipes.
The dish beautifully matches the spice of the sriracha with the unmistakable tang of the orange juice and orange zest. Part of me feels like it shouldn’t work… but it does.
I originally saw this recipe on Catalina’s Sweet and Savory Meals and knew I had to try it.
I actually don’t have an instant pot or pressure cooker (if any of you are feeling generous around my birthday then feel free to help me out!) so I just used a large saucepan instead. It worked brilliantly.
The use of sriracha and tomato sauce does mean that there is some sugar content but, like Catalina says, it’s far healthier than ordering takeout. It’s just as easy to put together, and should suit anyone who’s fighting for free time to cook during the week.
If you choose to make a big batch of it then it’ll last you well for a few days, and can easily be refrigerated and reheated.
Quick Tips
- Try to use low-sugar or even sugar-free orange juice. The sugar in the recipe is plenty for what we need, so any more in the form of orange juice will be overkill.
- Don’t forget the orange zest. It tops off the recipe perfectly.
- Don’t skip the cornstarch. Also don’t swap it out for flour. It just won’t achieve the results we want.
- Be patient with the cornstarch slurry. It won’t bring the sauce to thickness immediately, so be sure to let it work its magic before deciding to add any more.
- Both sriracha and tomato sauce are optional. I like the sriracha for its spice, and the tomato sauce for its flavor. Tabasco mixed in with ketchup is an excellent sriracha substitute if you need it.
One Pot Orange Chicken
Equipment
- pressure cooker
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken breast
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 cups brown or white rice
Sauce
- 1 cup orange juice
- 1 tbsp grated ginger
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tbsp rice wine
- ½ cup tomato sauce
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Sriracha
- zest from 1 orange
Cornstarch Slurry
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 tbsp orange juice
Garnish
- green onions sliced
- orange zest
Instructions
- Start by cutting your chicken into chunks, about 1 inch in size.
- Heat up a large pan over a medium-high heat and add vegetable oil.
- Once the pan has come to heat, add in the chicken and sauté, stirring continuously so it doesn’t stick to the pan. Cook for 2 minutes, or until it starts to turn golden or brown.
- Add all of the sauce ingredients. Stir ingredients and chicken until well combined and the chicken is suitably covered in sauce.
- Put the lid on your pan and leave to simmer for 30 minutes. Turn the heat down if the sauce starts to boil.
- Combine the cornstarch and orange juice for the cornstarch slurry in a bowl. Whisk well until thoroughly combined with no lumps or inconsistencies.
- Add the slurry to the pot and stir in thoroughly. Allow to simmer for 3-4 minutes, allowing the sauce to thicken.
- Remove the pan from the heat and allow to sit for 5 minutes, letting the sauce cool and thicken further.
- Serve the chicken over your choice of rice. Add the garnish and serve.
