Sweet, tangy, and totally addictive, our homemade Orange Chicken is even better than your favorite Chinese takeout! Tender chicken gets coated in a mixture of arrowroot and rice flour then baked to crispy perfection and tossed in a perfectly sweet and tangy orange sauce.
Table of Contents
- This recipe is…
- Why You’ll Love This Baked Orange Chicken Recipe
- Orange Chicken Recipe Ingredients
- Orange Chicken Recipe Variations and Modifications
- How to Make Orange Chicken at Home
- Recipe Tips
- How to Serve
- How to Store and Reheat
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Favorite Chicken Recipes
- Baked Gluten Free Orange Chicken Recipe
This recipe is…
I have been bursting to share this recipe with y’all! In fact, I think this baked gluten free orange chicken may be one of my favorite recipes we’ve EVER created! In my pre-gluten free days, I had a real love for Panda Express orange chicken and chow mein, and while we nailed a spaghetti squash chow mein a few years ago, it had been years since I’d gotten to eat anything close to that crispy orange chicken.
Even though we’ve successfully converted many takeout favorites before, like Mongolian Beef and Kung Pao Chicken, this baked gluten free orange chicken was a tall order. We knew we wanted a classic crispy orange chicken, but we wanted to avoid deep-frying it if we could, so we could avoid the mess and oil waste. I’m happy to say that we nailed it!
What makes orange chicken so good? We think it’s the craveable sauce made with fresh orange juice, a touch of sweetness, a punch of vinegar, and some red pepper flakes for heat. When the sauce caramelizes over chunks of tender, juicy coated chicken? It’s just magic.
For more Asian-inspired recipes, check out our honey sesame chicken, oven baked General Tso’s chicken, Instant Pot bourbon chicken, and our sheet pan sweet and sour chicken recipes too.
Why You’ll Love This Baked Orange Chicken Recipe
- Our homemade Orange Chicken is even better than takeout
- Baked — not fried! Which means less oil and less mess.
- A healthier bakes version of that sweet & tangy orange sauce you know and love from Panda Express
Orange Chicken Recipe Ingredients
There are three components to this dish homemade orange chicken recipe: the marinade, coating, and sauce. Find ingredient notes (including substitutions and swaps) below.
For the marinade:
- Egg White – to start, you’ll need 1 egg white
- Chicken thighs – you’ll need 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
- Arrowroot Starch – to help the chicken to really crisp, you’ll need 3 tablespoons of arrowroot starch
- Coconut Aminos – 1 tablespoon of coconut aminos adds a bit of really delicious flavor here
- Apple Cider Vinegar – 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar brightens everything up!
- Sea Salt – to season, you’ll need a 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
For the flour coating:
- Arrowroot Starch – you’ll need an additional ½ cup of arrowroot starch for the coating
- Rice flour – you’ll also use ½ cup white rice flour
- Salt – 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt seasons the coating mix
- Avocado oil – either avocado oil spray or about 1 tablespoon avocado oil will work here!
For the sauce:
- Arrowroot starch – to make this sweet and tangy sauce, you’ll use another tablespoon of arrowroot starch
- Sugar – you’ll need 2 tablespoons coconut sugar
- Orange juice – we call for ½ cup fresh orange juice, which is the juice from 2 medium-sized oranges
- Coconut aminos – you’ll use 1 tablespoon coconut aminos
- Vinegar – 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar gives the sauce a little punch
- Red pepper flakes – ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes add some heat
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Orange Chicken Recipe Variations and Modifications
Make this recipe your own with a few easy tweaks:
- Cuts of chicken – we strongly recommend using chicken thighs for this recipe because they stay juicy (more on that below). But if you really prefer chicken breasts, or that’s all you have at home, you could swap them for the thighs.
- Kid-friendly – if you’re making this recipe for young kiddos, you may want to leave the red pepper flakes out of the sauce mix and serve them on the side for those who want a little heat.
How to Make Orange Chicken at Home
It’s easier than you think to make this healthy baked orange chicken recipe at home! Here’s what you’ll need to do.
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, then lightly spray (or brush) it with avocado oil.
In a large bowl, whisk together the egg white, arrowroot starch, coconut aminos, apple cider vinegar, and salt. Add the chicken to the marinade and toss to coat.
Step 2:
In a small bowl, whisk together the arrowroot starch, white rice flour, and sea salt.
Step 3: Remove the chicken from the marinade, then dredge in the flour mixture, shake off the excess flour, and lay the chicken on the baking sheet.
Lightly spray or brush the chicken with avocado oil. Bake the chicken for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, flip the chicken, then bake for an additional 15 minutes, until browned and crisp.
Step 4: While the chicken is baking, whisk together the water, orange juice, coconut sugar, coconut aminos, apple cider vinegar, and red pepper flakes in a saucepan over medium heat.
Bring to a boil, then whisk together 1 tablespoon arrowroot starch with 2 tablespoons water. Pour the arrowroot mixture into the sauce, then bring to a boil. Once the sauce has thickened, remove from heat.
Step 5: Toss the chicken with the orange sauce, then garnish with white sesame seeds. Serve over white rice or cauliflower rice and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
Use half rice flour + half arrowroot starch – this is the key to crispy chicken, y’all! Don’t go all arrowroot OR all rice flour. Use half and half!
Use chicken thighs – while the chicken breast has its place, this recipe is all about chicken thighs! Trust us on this one.
Flip the chicken halfway through – you’ll bake the chicken for 15 minutes, then flip it, and bake it for another 15 minutes. This is key in helping the chicken to get nice and crispy on all sides!
Don’t overlap the chicken – when laying the chicken on the sheet pan to bake, be sure that none of the pieces are overlapping. In fact, if you need to use more than one sheet pan in order to not overlap, do that!
How to Serve
We love this gluten free orange chicken alongside white or brown rice (or cauliflower rice for low carb) and a green veggie like broccoli or green beans. If you’d like a veggie, some simple steamed broccoli or snow peas work great here!
How to Store and Reheat
While this recipe really is best right out of the oven, it’ll store just fine too! We recommend storing the chicken separate from the sauce, though, to keep it from getting soggy in the refrigerator. When you’re ready to enjoy, either microwave the chicken, or lay it back out on a sheet pan to crisp up in a 350°F oven until warmed through, toss it with the orange sauce, and then enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Because it’s made up of fresh orange juice, coconut sugar, coconut aminos, apple cider vinegar, and red pepper flakes, the orange chicken sauce is equal parts tangy, sweet, and salty, with just a hint of (optional) spice.
If you’re wondering “Is orange chicken better with thighs or breasts?,” the answer is a resounding THIGHS! Always thighs. When it comes to Asian-Inspired dishes, we say that chicken thighs (vs. breasts) are best. Because they have a higher fat content than chicken breasts, they have the magical ability to get nice and crispy on the outside while still staying juicy and delicious on the inside!
Typically, the only way to get really crispy orange chicken is to fry it, BUT, after some trial and error, we were able to get BAKED gluten free orange chicken that was crisp on the outside and still tender inside. Because we cracked the code, we say that baked orange chicken is best! Here’s what makes this recipe work:
A coating of half arrowroot starch and half rice flour: we found that regular gluten free flour was too dense to produce a crispy texture, but the combination of arrowroot and rice flour created a light and crispy coating.
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs: since the chicken needs to bake at a high temperature for a fairly long amount of time to get the coating crisp, we recommend using chicken thighs to avoid drying out the chicken.
Avocado oil spray: While you can brush the chicken with avocado oil if you’re in a pinch, avocado oil spray is really key in this recipe for making sure that the chicken is evenly coated.
If you’ve wondered “What is Panda Express orange chicken made from?,” you’re not alone. The iconic Chinese-American dish has been a cult favorite for decades! Our version isn’t a strict copycat Panda Express orange chicken recipe. But we think it’s even better…and it’s definitely healthier! Instead of frying the chicken and using a laundry list of ingredients to make the sauce, our version has all the sweet-tangy orange chicken flavors you love without all the oil, fat, and gluten.
More Favorite Chicken Recipes
If you tried this recipe for Orange Chicken, or any other recipe on the Fed & Fit website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let us know how it went in the 📝 comments below!
Baked Gluten Free Orange Chicken
Ingredients
For the marinade:
- 1 egg white
- 3 tablespoons arrowroot starch
- 1 tablespoon coconut aminos
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
For the flour coating:
- ½ cup arrowroot starch
- ½ cup white rice flour
- 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- Avocado oil spray, or about 1 tablespoon avocado oil
For the sauce:
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup fresh orange juice, about 2 oranges
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar
- 1 tablespoon coconut aminos
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot starch
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, then lightly spray it with the avocado oil spray, or brush it with half of the avocado oil.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the egg white, arrowroot starch, coconut aminos, apple cider vinegar, and salt. Add the chicken to the marinade and toss to coat.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the arrowroot starch, white rice flour, and sea salt.
- Remove the chicken from the marinade then dredge in the flour mixture, then shake off the excess flour and lay the chicken on the baking sheet. Lightly spray the chicken with avocado oil, or brush it with the remaining oil, then bake for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, flip the chicken then bake for an additional 15 minutes, until browned and crisp.
- While the chicken is baking, whisk together the water, orange juice, coconut sugar, coconut aminos, apple cider vinegar, and red pepper flakes in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then whisk together 1 tablespoon arrowroot starch with 2 tablespoons water. Pour the arrowroot mixture into the sauce, then bring to a boil. Once the sauce has thickened, remove from heat.
- Toss the chicken with the orange sauce then garnish with white sesame seeds. Serve over white rice or cauliflower rice and enjoy!
Nutrition
This recipe is perfect as written! AND I also discovered the marinade, flour coating, and cooking process using chicken breast makes great chicken nuggets for my kids. Rave reviews all around whichever version gets made in my house – been making it for years!
So smart, Jules!! We are so so happy it is a hit with your fam! Thank you so much for taking the time to share!
This was super easy to make and tasted great! Will give it a go in the air fryer next time and try with homemade orange juice and a little zest.
Homemade oj?! YUM! We are so glad you enjoyed it!
I Love this recipe! I’m curious though if the macros are correct — does it really only have 4g fat?
This was phenomenal and so easy. I didn’t have the rice flour or arrow root starch, so I subbed paleo flour and it worked out perfectly! And subbed agave syrup instead of coconut sugar. Delicious!
We are so glad to hear you loved this recipe, Laura! Thank you for sharing your thoughtful subs with us. We really appreciate you! -Team FF
my first time making this. It was yummy. Kept my thigh cutlets while to save on time. But still baked in the oven. Also made fried rice for the side. It was a hit!!!
We are so glad you enjoyed, Lori! What a great idea to keep your chicken thighs whole. -Team F&F
The sauce was underwhelming. At minimum use all OJ instead of water, maybe even cook some down or use concentrate and up the aminos a bit.
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback with us, Shauna! We will take those notes into consideration when reviewing the recipe. -Team F&F
I enjoyed the sauce on the lighter side, but was worried at first. I get it, if you’re expecting it to be like orange chicken from take out…you would want a stronger sauce.
Could the arrowroot and rice flour be subbed with regular all purpose for non-GF? Thanks!
Hi Amanda! You can certainly use regular, AP flour in this recipe, but we found that it is a bit more dense than the arrowroot and rice flour, so doesn’t get quite as crispy. Enjoy! -Team F&F
This chicken is amazing. My fiancé says it’s the best chicken he can remember having! Thank you for another fabulous recipe!
Oh, I forgot to mention that we cooked it in the air fryer! 400 degrees for 12 mins, flipped halfway through!
Amazing! That’s so great, Rachel. Thank you for letting us know!
Absolutely delicious!! Great recipe. Even my non gluten free family members love this recipe. 🙂
Wahoo! So glad to hear that, Annette. Thank you for sharing this with us!
Great!
So glad you liked it!
It wos too dry
So sorry you didn’t love it, Isaac!
Could I replace the arrowroot starch with tapioca flour? Thank you!
You sure can!
The chicken reminds me of chicken nuggets from when I was a kid – in the best way. Amazing fish!
I meant – amazing DISH!
So glad you enjoyed it!
This is very good! Even my husband liked it who doesn’t love anything gluten free. Do you have the nutritional info on it?
Made with Natalies Orange Mango juice… OMG. So good. Family favorite. Typically I avoid these dishes at restaurants because they tend to leave chunks of fat on their chicken thighs, which totally grosses me out. With this, I get to trim the thighs to my liking and it is SO MUCH BETTER!
So glad you enjoyed it Crystal – love the idea of an orange mango juice!