ORANGE ORANGE CHICKEN

I always worried that the only way to get good orange chicken or even sweet and sour chicken was to start dialing the phone to my local chinese take out. But I tried a bunch of ways to make orange chicken and found this to be spectacular!!! If you don't like it too sweet add a bit more soy sauce and less citrus juices and brown sugar. I serve it over rice but it can be a meal all by itself. Try to use fresh fruit juices if you can.

Ingredients
2 full boneless chicken breasts cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1-1/2 cups water, plus 2 tbl
3 tbl orange juice
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
3 tbl soy sauce
1/2 tsp fresh ginger minced
1 shallot minced
3 cloves garlic minced
1 tbl orange zest
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
3 tbl corn starch
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
3/4 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3 tbl canola oil

In a small sauce pan combine 1-1/2 cups water, orange juice, lemon juice, vinegar and soy sauce over medium high heat. Then add, orange zest, brown sugar, ginger, shallot, garlic and red pepper. Bring to a boil and then remove from heat and let it cool. At this point you should taste the sauce to check the sweetness. Add more juice or more soy depending on what you like.

When the sauce cools pour 1 cup into a ziploc bag and add chicken pieces to marinate. Place in the refrigerator for at least 2-3 hours.

In a large shallow bowl combine panko, flour salt and pepper. After the chicken has marinated, dredge the pieces in the panko, flour mixture.

Heat oil in a pan and in batches add the chicken and cook until golden brown and cooked through. Drain excess oil from the chicken on paper towels. When you are done cooking the chicken, wipe out the pan and add the remaining sauce. Heat to a boil and add the cornstarch and remaining water. You should combine the cornstarch and water in a separate bowl first to remove any lumps. Turn heat to low and stir until sauce thickens. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve.
SOOOOOOOOOO good!!!
ENJOY!