Air Fryer Orange Chicken

Air Fryer Orange Chicken is crunchy on the outside, tender on the inside, and drenched in an irresistible sweet-savory sauce made with orange juice and zest.

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Orange Chicken is one of the most popular dishes on (American) Chinese restaurant menus. There's even a frozen Trader Joe’s Mandarin Orange Chicken that people go nuts for.

This air fried orange chicken recipe is every bit as good as your favorite Chinese restaurant’s. And it’s healthier, too, thanks to air frying with very little oil.

These crispy air fried chicken nuggets have a savory-sweet sauce made with orange juice and orange zest, along with soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and other seasonings.

I love to get orange chicken at my neighborhood Chinese restaurant, but sometimes I want a healthier version that I can cook at home. Air Fryer Orange Chicken is easy to make, with very little mess (unlike deep frying), and it’s light, too.

What is air fryer orange chicken?

This recipe starts with my basic recipe for Air Fryer Fried Chicken (be sure to read my post on How to Air Fry Chicken for some tips for success) and adds a simple soy sauce-based marinade and a quick sauce made with orange juice, orange zest, soy sauce, and other ingredients.

Bite size pieces of chicken marinate for anywhere from 20 minutes to overnight. Then they’re dredged in egg and a flour-and-cornstarch mixture and air fried to crispy perfection.

Once the chicken pieces are air fried, toss them with the addictive savory-sweet orange sauce to coat.

I love to eat the sticky, crunchy chicken nuggets with my fingers (and lick the sauce off. Yeah! It’s seriously finger-licking good.)

Ingredient Notes

There are 3 parts to this recipe: The marinade, the coating mixture, and the sauce, but even though it may look like a lot of ingredients, most are pantry staples and several are repeated in both the marinade and sauce. Here are a few notes:

Chicken: I like to use thigh meat because it is juicier and more flavorful, but you can use leaner breast meat if you prefer.

Shiaoxing wine: This is a staple that I always have in my pantry because I do a lot of Chinese cooking. It is a dry cooking wine, not sweet like mirin. You can find it in Asian markets, but if you don't have it, you can substitute sake, dry white wine, or dry sherry.

Chile paste: I use just a basic chile paste that is made of just chiles and salt. My favorite brand is Sambal Oelek, but there are plenty of others that are good. Just make sure you don't get one with garlic—chile garlic paste is good, too, just not what's called for here. You can buy chile paste in most supermarkets and any Asian market.

How do you make it?

This Air Fryer Orange Chicken recipe is easy to make and I love that there's no need to heat up a pot of oil or let it splatter all over your kitchen.

1. As with my other air fryer fried chicken recipes, you first marinate the chicken. You can marinate it for just 20 minutes or overnight—the longer the better.
2. Next the chicken pieces are dredged in a mixture of flour and cornstarch, dunked in egg, and dredged again in the flour and cornstarch mixture.
3. Put the coated pieces in the air fryer, sprits with oil, and air fry, flipping once, until browned and crisp.
4. While the chicken is in the air fryer, make the sauce in a saucepan.
5. When the chicken is done air frying, immediately toss it with the sauce to coat.
6. Serve hot, garnished with scallions or chives and sesame seeds, if desired.

Tips for success

1. First, check out my post on How to Make Air fryer Fried Chicken to learn how to make perfectly crunchy, golden brown air fried chicken.
2. I like to use a combination of all-purpose flour and cornstarch (or potato starch) to dredge the chicken. The reason I do this is that the flour works really well to give the coating a nice golden brown color and the cornstarch makes it nice and crispy. I have tried doing all flour, but found the coating just doesn’t get as crisp as I like. And I’ve tried doing all cornstarch and it is nice and crisp (and light!) but the color isn’t as nice. If I had to choose one, I’d go with all cornstarch, but I think the combo is ideal.
3. I use freshly squeezed orange juice. This may be a no-brainer since you need an orange for the zest. I find it usually takes 2 good-size oranges to get enough juice. Also, don’t skip the zest! It adds an extra boost of orange flavor that you don’t get from the juice alone.

more air fryer chicken recipes you'll love

If you love this orange chicken, there are so many other great air fryer chicken recipes to try! Air Fryer Korean Fried Chicken is a total crowd pleaser. Or try Air Fryer Buttermilk Fried Chicken or an Air Fryer Fried Chicken Sandwich.

For a change of pace, try Air Fryer Chicken Shawarma or Air Fryer Chicken Enchiladas.

Air Fryer Orange Chicken

Robin Donovan

Air Fryer Orange Chicken is easy to make and tastes just like your favorite restaurant version, but it's so much healthier!

4.75 from 93 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Additional Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Course Main Dish Recipes

Cuisine Chinese

Servings 6 Serves 6

Calories 457 kcal

Equipment

• Airware Aeromats The Original Reusable Air Fryer Liners Plus Magnetic Cheat Sheet | USA Designed, 100% Food-Grade Silicone | Air Fryer Accessories COSORI, INSTANT VORTEX, GOURMIA, AND MORE 8.5″ Square
• Air Fryer Parchment Paper Liners: Air Fryer Liners 200PCS 8.5 inch Square Perforated parchment paper for Air Fryer, Premium Bamboo Steamer Liner for Air Fryers Baking Cooking Oven

Cook Mode(keep your screen awake)

Ingredients

  

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• ▢ 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thigh meat, cut into bite-size chunks

For the marinade

• ▢ 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Shiaoxing wine
• ▢ 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• ▢ 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
• ▢ ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For coating

• ▢ 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• ▢ 3/4 cup cornstarch
• ▢ 2 large eggs lightly beaten
• ▢ Cooking oil for brushing or spritzing

For the sauce

• ▢ ½ cup orange juice
• ▢ ¼ cup soy sauce
• ▢ 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• ▢ 1 tablespoon orange zest
• ▢ 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• ▢ 1 teaspoon chile paste optional, or add more to taste
• ▢ 2 garlic cloves minced
• ▢ 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
• ▢ 1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons cold water
• ▢ 4 scallions thinly sliced, for garnish (optional)
• ▢ 2 tablespoons sesame seeds for garnish (optional)

Instructions

 

• In a medium bowl, combine the marinade ingredients (2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 2 teaspoons ginger, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper). Add the chicken and stir to coat the chicken well. Cover and marinate for at least 20 minutes or as long as 24 hours (refrigerate if marinating for longer than 20 minutes).
• Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade, discarding the marinade.
• In a shallow bowl, combine the flour and cornstarch. Put the eggs in a second bowl. Line the air fryer basket with a parchment paper liner or a silicone liner if using.
• Dredge each chicken piece in the flour mixture first, then dunkit into the egg, then dredge again in the flour mixture so that it is completely coated. Repeat with the remaining chicken pieces. As the chicken pieces are coated, arrange them in a single layer in the air fryer with a little space in between. You may need to cook the chicken in 2 batches.
• Line the air fryer basket with a perforated parchment paperliner, if using.
• Spritz or brush the chicken pieces with oil so that all of the flour is wet.
• Air fry at 400ºF for 5 to 8 minutes.
• Flip the chicken pieces over, spritz or brush with more oil, and fry for 5 to 8 more minutes at 400ºF, until golden brown and crisp.
• While the chicken is air frying, make the sauce. In a saucepan, combine the orange juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, orange zest, rice vinegar, chile paste, garlic, and ginger. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar is fully dissolved. While the sauce is boiling, add the cornstarch and water slurry and continue to cook, stirring, until the mixture thickens, about 1 minute more.
• When the chicken is done, toss the chicken and sauce together in a bowl to coat the chicken pieces well.
• Serve hot, garnished with scallions and sesame seeds, if using.

Notes

I strongly recommend using a parchment paper liner or a silicone liner to prevent the coating from sticking to the basket.

Nutrition

Serving: 1Calories: 457kcalCarbohydrates: 38gProtein: 38gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 218mgSodium: 1131mgFiber: 2gSugar: 8g

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