3-Ingredient Orange Chicken Recipe

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Very few of us are strangers to a busy day, and some evenings are simply too busy for a scratch-made meal. That's where frozen shortcuts come in handy. While Trader Joe's may have the market cornered on ready-to-eat entrees, the store isn't always close by, making a quick meal a harder task. Thankfully, almost every grocery store sells a few items that make quick meals easy in a pinch, and some ingredients may already be waiting in your pantry.

This easy three-ingredient orange chicken recipe written with Michelle McGlinn uses frozen popcorn chicken, teriyaki sauce, and orange marmalade to shortcut a Chinese-American takeout favorite so that you can make it in under 20 minutes at home. Instead of a long list of ingredients (delicious as they may be) like soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, rice wine vinegar, dried orange peel, and ginger, the teriyaki sauce and orange marmalade streamline the recipe into a simple reduction that comes together in less than 10 minutes. A meal made for busy nights, this three-ingredient orange chicken recipe makes weeknight dinners an (almost) effortless ordeal.

The only ingredients you will need for this recipe are a large bag of frozen popcorn chicken, teriyaki sauce, and orange marmalade. If you can't find frozen popcorn chicken, any small breaded chicken pieces will work. In a pinch, you can even use chicken tenders cut into 1-inch pieces.

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Add popcorn chicken to a foil-lined sheet tray.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until crispy.

Meanwhile, add marmalade and teriyaki sauce to a saucepan over medium-low heat.

Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring often, until thick.

Toss the chicken with the orange teriyaki sauce.

Serve the orange chicken with white rice, or as desired.

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Perhaps no recent appliance has been as influential to our kitchens as the air fryer, which has transformed the way we prepare leftover and frozen foods. The high-heat, efficient convection has given us the ability to re-crisp everything from pizza crust to french fries, giving life to foods we normally dread eating for the second time. Best of all, it cuts cook times in half, baking frozen fried foods quickly with even better results. That's why, if you have one, you should add the chicken in this recipe to an air fryer instead of the oven.

Most frozen, breaded chicken brands will already have instructions for air frying the chicken pieces. In general, you'll heat the air fryer to 400 F, add the chicken and lightly spray with oil, then air fry for 12 to 15 minutes, turning once in between. Air fryers heat up more quickly than conventional ovens, meaning this method saves 10 to 15 minutes of time.

Though this recipe is designed to be made with few ingredients and in less than 20 minutes, you can always make the chicken from scratch by frying the pieces yourself. To do this, first slice boneless chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces. First dredge the chicken in flour, then coat with beaten egg and dredge again in flour, baking powder, cornstarch, and salt. Heat a pot of oil over medium heat, and once hot, fry the chicken pieces until browned and crispy. You can take it a step further by marinating the chicken first in soy sauce and Shaoxing wine, infusing it with more flavor before frying.

For a lighter version, you can also bake chicken pieces. To do this, first dredge the chicken thigh pieces in flour, then coat with beaten egg, then firmly press into breadcrumbs to coat. Spray with oil and bake in a 400 F oven until crispy and cooked through, about 20 minutes. This version, while a little different than traditional takeout orange chicken, will use much less oil than frying.

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