Instant Pot Orange Chicken – 30 Minutes
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Instant Pot Orange Chicken is healthier than takeout and easy to make using your Instant Pot. Made with fresh orange juice and orange zest for great flavor.
We love using Instant Pot to make easy and delicious dishes. Our Instant Pot Orange Chicken is the most popular recipe on the blog. Other readers’ favorite dishes are Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta, Instant Pot Mongolian Beef and Instant Pot Mongolia Chicken.
Instant Pot Orange Chicken
Instant Pot Orange Chicken is one of the easiest and most flavorful dishes that you can make in just 30 minutes. Forget about takeout, this easy dinner made with easy to find ingredients is so good that it will become a staple in your house.
The Instant Pot Orange Chicken is made entirely in the Instant Pot, so less dishes for you to clean. Made with orange juice and orange zest, gives the dish an amazing fresh aroma. Sweet and hearty, served over brown rice, this dinner is so much healthier than takeout and also budget friendly, as you will have leftovers that taste great.
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Why You’ll Enjoy This Instant Pot Orange Chicken:
- It is easy to make and it takes only around 30 minutes!
- Only one pot to clean and that is the Instant Pot.
- The dish is packed with amazing flavors and lean protein.
- It is perfect for busy weeknights and also for entertaining guests.
- You will have delicious leftovers that can be stored in the fridge, in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Instant Pot Orange Chicken Recipe Tips:
- I always say this, but a good meat centered meal starts with quality meat, so use organic chicken breasts.
- I used No Sugar Added Orange juice, since the recipe already asks for sugar. If you want to use sweetened orange juice I would say to reduce the added sugar, taste and adjust.
- The tomato sauce is optional, it adds a nice tangy flavor, if you prefer that.
- Using fresh orange zest is key and please don’t skip this step, it will add amazing flavor.
- Cornstarch is a key ingredient in here, do not try to replace it with flour, the results will not be the same.
- When it comes to adding the cornstarch, I recommend to mix the cornstarch with orange juice until dissolved and add the slurry to the Instant Pot at the end to thicken the sauce.
- If the sauce is too runny, mix another 1-2 teaspoons of cornstarch with water and add it to the Instant Pot. Please note, that the sauce will get thicker with time, so definitely wait a bit before adding more cornstarch.
- You can also taste and adjust the sugar in this recipe, I like my Orange Chicken on the sweeter side, but you can use less.
- Sriracha sauce is optional, I like the nice kick of heat that it adds, you can add more or less as you please.
- For extra flavor add 1 tablespoon of freshly grated ginger!
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What is best to serve with Orange Chicken?
- White or Brown Rice
- Vegetable such as broccoli, asparagus or bok choy
- Noodles
How to make Orange Zest?
- Rinse the orange.
- Set your tool over a cutting board. A microplane produces a very fine zest, perfect for baking and cooking. If you don’t have a microplane, use the smallest holes on an ordinary grater.
- Grate the skin of the orange only. Grate just enough to get through the orange skin, this way you can avoid the bitter white pith underneath.
- Rotate the orange and repeat. Once the white pith is exposed, rotate the orange and zest the next strip of peel. Repeat until most of the peel is removed, or until you have enough zest for your recipe.
Can Orange Chicken be made in your Crock Pot?
This dish can also be made in your Crock Pot or in the Instant Pot using the Slow Cooker function. Add browned chicken to the Slow Cooker, add the orange mixture except the slurry. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours. Make the slurry, gently stir it in and cook on high for 20 more minutes. Serve and enjoy!
What is a 10 Minutes Natural Pressure Release?
A Natural Pressure Release means that the pressure is released gradually. For a Natural Pressure Release, you click on Keep Warm, and wait 10 minutes, after which you open the valve and let any leftover pressure to release. Another option is to Turn Off/Unplug the pressure cooker, wait 10 minutes and after that open the valve. A natural release is usually used when cooking soups, meat in a large amount of sauce, pasta or steel cut oats. This method prevents for any foam from the dish to shoot out through the valve, which can happen during a Quick Pressure Release.
Looking for more Instant Pot Recipes? Check my collection here:
Tools/Ingredients I used to make the Instant Pot Orange Chicken Recipe:
- Instant Pot – I use it all the time, either the Pressure Cooker function or the Slow Cooker function, I also like that I can just sauté / brown the meat and veggies directly in the pot using the Sauté function.
- Cornstarch – I prefer using cornstarch instead of flour to thicken sauces, and this organic brand is my favorite.
Instant Pot Orange Chicken
Instant Pot Orange Chicken is healthier than takeout and easy to make using your Instant Pot. Made with fresh orange juice and orange zest for great flavor.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken breast or thighs cut into 1-2 inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 cup orange juice no sugar added
- 1 tablespoon ginger grated
- 6 cloves garlic* minced
- 1 tablespoon rice wine or dry white wine**
- 1/2 cup tomato sauce optional
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup lite soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon Sriracha***
- zest from 1 orange
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- 4 green onions sliced
- extra orange zest
Instructions
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It is important for the chicken not to have any extra moisture, dry it with a few paper towels and after that cut the chicken into 1-2 inch chunks.
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Heat up your pressure cooker: press Sauté -> click on the Adjust button -> select More to get the Sauté More function, which means that the food will be sautéed over medium-high heat. Wait for the Instant Pot indicator to read HOT.
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Add the oil to the hot Instant Pot, add the chicken and sauté for 2-3 minutes, stirring a few times. Cook until it just starts to get golden. When sautéing it, stir constantly so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.
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Also, after you sauté the chicken, check if bits stuck to the bottom, in that case, deglaze the pot with 1/4 cup orange juice and scrape them with a wooden spoon. If you leave the bits stuck to the bottom, they may burn or cause the pot not to come to pressure.
If you want a truly golden-brown chicken, brown it on the stove top, as the Instant Pot isn't really good for that.
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Add the Sauce ingredients to the pot: remaining 3/4 cups of orange juice, minced garlic, ginger, soy sauce, white sugar, brown sugar, rice wine, orange zest and Sriracha sauce. You can skip the Sriracha sauce or add more if you prefer your food on the spicier side.
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Add the tomato sauce if you are using it. The tomato sauce adds a tanginess to the overall sweet recipe, and it makes it taste more savory. It is based on your own preference. I like it both ways: with and without the sauce. You can use less, or completely leave it out if you want a pure orange aroma.
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Stir gently until all the ingredients are combined and coated in sauce.
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Close lid, select Manual, and select 5 minutes on High Pressure. Make sure the vent is closed.
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Use a 10 minute Natural Release. Turn off the heat. Release the remaining pressure by opening the vent. Open the lid.
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Select again the Sauté function, on LOW. In a medium bowl combine 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with the orange juice, whisk until all combined with no lumps.
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Add the mixture to the Instant Pot and gently stir to combine. Cook on Sauté function for a few more minutes, stirring gently, until the sauce thickens. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
If you want the sauce even thicker, mix one more tablespoon of cornstarch with orange juice and add it to the pot.
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Let the Orange Chicken stand for 5-7 minutes, the sauce will thicken more.
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Serve over rice and garnish with fresh chopped green onions and extra orange zest.
*I love the extra garlic in this dish, for some people it may be too much, you can use 3-4 cloves only, if you are not a huge garlic fan.
**You can also skip it if you don't have any on hand.
***You can add more or less Sriracha or skip it entirely, based on preference or use red pepper flakes.
Here is a step by step video of how to make the Instant Pot Orange Chicken Recipe:
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I’m always looking for new instant pot recipes! Love the flavors in this recipe!
I am new to the instant pot and am making the orange chicken today. The recipe says to use the manual setting, there isn’t a manual button so I’m not sure how to program the cook time. Can anyone help? Thanks, Gail
Hi, the Manual button has been replaced with ‘pressure cook’ button on newer models.
I believe it’s the pressure cook button
Oh my. This looks amazing, Can’t wait to try ut!
HECK YES! I need to try this IP-o-goodnesss stat! Love it girly!
This is one of our favorite take out dishes! Can’t wait to try this one at home!
This looks so much better than takeout!
I need to get myself an Instant Pot pronto!
NEED this for dinner tonight!
Love one pot dinners! So easy!
So I made this for dinner tonight. I did add some red and green pepper and onion. This is only the second dish I have made in the IP. I would like to know how to cook the chicken without the vegs disintegrating. The last thing I made was Sweet potato, coconut chicken curry. The time called for 15 mins under pressure. The vegetables disintegrated. Same thing with this recipe on the poultry setting for only 7 mins. Do you, or anyone else out there have a solution for this? BTW, the flavor was awesome. Served over Cauli-rice.
Hi there 🙂 I am so glad that you enjoyed this recipe 🙂 but if you liked it so much why did you give four stars? 🙂 just curious. Ok, so moving onto the veggies, yes they will disintegrate, cause if they are not in some type of broth, they are being over cooked. The red and green peppers need only 1-3 minutes of cooking on High Pressure and only 5 on Low Pressure, so they are being overcooked.
There are a few things you can try if adding veggies to a recipe that doesn’t ask for some, you can steam them in the instant pot before you start on the recipe, it just takes a few minutes and you can mix them in later or serve on the side.
Other option, when you open the instant pot, like in the Orange Chicken Case, you can select the Saute function, add the veggies and cook for a few minutes, this would work for peppers, snap peas, thinly sliced mushrooms.
Let me know if that helps!
Cut your veggies bigger and throw in raw.
Can we add the rice to the pot all together?
No, not for this recipe, sorry.
Can I double the recipe? and if I can do I add some additional time? How much?
no need to adjust the cooking time.
I try to avoid vegetable oil. Do you know if this recipe would work with olive oil?
Yes, it will 🙂 I am happy to say that I actually tried it with olive oil 🙂
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Yum! I didn’t have tomato sauce, so I used tomato paste and added some more orange juice. I will probably add some red pepper flakes next time since I like 🔥! I made enough for a several meals, and I can’t wait to see how this sauce carmelizes when I heat it up on the stove tomorrow night. Definitely going into my Pepper Plate file!
Hi Gayle 🙂 so excited that you loved the recipe. Yes! You can add more pepper flakes to make it as HOT as you like! Thank you very much for coming back to let me know how it turned out!
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Can I make it without a pressure cooker? My husband’s brother was burned from a pressure cooker and he won’t have one in the house
Hi nance, what a horrible experience. Yes, you can, I offer slow cooker suggestions in the post under Tips & Tricks, on how to make it in the slow cooker. You can just make it on the stove top too. Brown the chicken, add the rest of the ingredients, add the slurry and the end.
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Hi there
I am making this tonight for dinner, just got my new instant pot duo! Can i double the recipe?
Yes, you can! Lem me know how it turns out!
I am new to the instant pot and this is the third recipe I’ve tried making and so far, the best! We had it over white rice. We made 2 substitutions, sesame oil instead of vegetable oil and tomato paste and some water instead of tomato sauce. I’ll use tomato sauce when I make it again. The paste seemed to make the sauce a little thicker, and once I added the corn starch it got really thick-we just added a little more water, since we used fresh squeezed oranges and ran out of juice. Maybe I didn’t use enough water to thin the paste, I’m not the best cook! Either way, this had great flavor and turned out really good!
Very happy that you liked it, use more water/juice to make the sauce thinner if you prefer it that way! thank you for commenting with your results!
Any suggestions on substitutions for the soy sauce? Allergic 🙁
can you have tamari sauce?
I use Coconut Aminos instead of Soy sauce in everything.
Erin – I have a child with Celiac and cook almost everything we eat. Whenever soy sauce is called for, I substitute tamari sauce and get great results. San-J offers a low sodium variety as well as regular and organic. Hope that helps!
-Gina
PS- I just found this recipe today and am going to make it for dinner tonight. I’ll post about how it came out. We are very excited to try it b/c we love Chinese food and can’t find it GF anywhere!!
Just made this last night for a big family supper and everyone loved it !! Great recipe thanks !!
So happy that you enjoyed it! Thank you for letting me know!
Can this be done with frozen chicken breast tenderloins? What modifications should I make?
You will have to increase the cooking time to 12 minutes.
The cooking time should stay the same. It will take longer to come to pressure though if the chicken is frozen
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Strangely, although I have an instant pot, on the poultry setting I could not program it for less than 10 minutes. So instead I chose manual on high pressure for 7 minutes and it was burnt on the bottom of the pot. Next time I’ll try medium pressure I guess. Otherwise it is delicious and I’ll be making it again.
This is my second time making this dish. We LOVED it the first time which was just last week. We have been craving it again so making it tonight. However, I would like to double the recipe in my insta pot. Do I need to add more time to the poultry setting? Would it need more than 7 min for 4lbs of chicken?
I would not do more than 10 mins with a 10 min manual release. I am very happy you like the recipe 🙂 Its one of my most popular ones!
Sounds wonderful, I can’t wait to try this!
For the person looking for a soy sauce substitute: https://www.google.ca/amp/www.geniuskitchen.com/amp/recipe/soy-sauce-substitute-216380#ampshare=http://www.geniuskitchen.com/recipe/soy-sauce-substitute-216380
My instant pot doesn’t have a poultry setting – any suggestions?
Just use the manual setting for the minutes asked in the recipe 🙂
Love your reply! Seriously I’m always amazed at what people will post! Thank you for this recipe and all your crap:) very helpful!
haha thanks Shirley 🙂 yeah sometimes people amaze me too!
I LOVE orange chicken but Wow. 1/2 cup of sugar is A LOT!! I’m going to try and make this Whole30 compliant, eliminating the sugar and using chopped dates, and substituting coconut aminos for the soy.
Let me know how it works out so I can update the post 🙂
I made mine with fresh squeeze OJ and half the sugar and thought it was plenty sweet.
How did it turn out? I would like to try without all of that sugar, as well. Let me know! Thanks!
I forgot to thaw my chicken today! Can I make this with frozen chicken as long as I can cut the breasts up?
Hi Andrea, skip the saute step and cook for 12 minutes.
Excellent instructions. Have not tried it yet, but plan to soon.
Can you do the rice at the same time but as “pot in pot” over the chicken?
I haven’t tried it, but based on cooking time and experience it might not work.
Did you try the pot in pot method? Curious to know how the rice turned out if you did. 😊
Hi Melanie, no I haven’t tried that method with this recipe, but i plan on soon as I have had many requests.
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Delicious 🙌 Only thing I did different was substitute liquid aminos for soy sauce.
Trying this tonight…it’s my first Instapot attempt! Mine doesn’t have a poultry setting though so i selected Meat/Stew…should this work ok?
It should, next time just use Manual setting for the specified time on High.
My husband and I are always looking for ways we can cook tasty, healthy meals in our Instant pot. Well we made this last night. It was so easy and amazing and spot on for the flavors. This is what we call a KEEPER. We are so blessed to have found your blog and look forward to making more of your outstanding recipes! P.S. I followed the recipe to a T. Thank you so much, Stephanie
Hi Stephanie! I am so happy that you both loved this recipe! It is so easy, right? And the end result is a restaurant type meal!
My IP Duo doesn’t have an “adjust” button so for the sauté setting, how do i get it to say more?
Just wait for it to read HOT.
Hi, I’m in the same boat. Your second saute mentions a low setting. How do I do that with no adjust button? Thanks!
Just use the Sauce then, and watch the food closely, as it may get done quicker.
If you press sauté again it will change to low…so hit sauté and automatically I believe it will be “high” sauté, hit it again and it should be “medium” sauté, and a third time should be “low”. The way to tell is the think red lights will flash as you press sauté. I hope this makes sense…
The tomato sauce was overpowering so we added additional sriracha, orange zest, squeezed an orange slice over the chicken once plated and added ginger powder. Then it was phenomenal! I love how easy this recipe is to tweak to your liking. It makes a really great Asian chicken base. Next time, however, I may cook it with half as much tomato sauce and add more sriracha as well as add some whole ginger. Thank you for this recipe!
Home run! In a family of 5, it’s hard to find new recipes that everyone likes. I made this for a night when everyone would be eating at different times due to our crazy schedules. Each person commented about how much they liked it, even my picky 13 year old! She even declared it better than the takeout from the local Chinese restaurant. Will definitely make it again and give some of your other recipes a try. Thanks!
FYI: I tripled everything, but next time I could get away with triple the chicken and double the sauce. I browned the chicken in a skillet before adding to the InstantPot and added the cornstarch slurry at the end. I also steamed some broccoli and added that before serving. So easy!
wow I am so happy everyone loved it!!! Thank you for your feedback 🙂
Did you change the cook time to triple it? We have a family of 6 so usually triple our recipes… Thanks!
hm, tripling this recipe may be too much, start by doubling it, as its a large one to begin with. When it comes to cooking, I would do 10 mins if double the recipe and the 10 min NPR.
Thanks Catalina! Making it tonight.
How did the Doubling work out? I love instapots- but I have a hard time getting recipes to cook correctly when I double them- and I really dislike cooking for just one night- I usually just do 2 or 3.
How did it work out? is doubling doable?
it would be nice if you could just download and print out the recipe. there is way too much crap going on to just print this out.
The crap that is going on is called a blog post. You can skip the crap that bothers you and click on print, didn’t you realize that? It actually prints the recipe for you. By the way, it took you more time to leave me this crappy message, you could’ve printed the recipe 10 times. Just saying.
An excellent response!
Some people have no filter. I’m sorry you had this kind of feedback.
Ridiculous
#whereistheeyerollingemoji?
lol thanks I look for that emoji a lot
I love that this turned out with the flavor of natural oranges and not tasting like an orange jelly was melted on the top. The flavors are amazing. Great job on this recipe & thanks for sharing.
My daughter-in-law loves Orange Chicken. We are giving her and my son and Instant Pot for Christmas and I am going to include this for them to try! Sounds great!
No rating because we did not try it.
great gift, hope she likes it!
My mini instant pot arrives tomorrow. This will be my first recipe to try. Can’t wait!
I use minced garlic when cooking, do you know approx how many tsp or tbsp it would equal? Tia!
I used a lot of garlic, you can use 2 tablespoons or just one, depending on your preference.
I made this last night (first dish in my new Instant Pot) and it was great! I did use minced garlic and a lot of it, 2-3 tablespoons actually. We like a lot of garlic in our dishes and it was perfect. I was feeding a crowd of 6 and hoping for leftovers for a few days so I doubled the recipe and increased the cooking time to 10 minutes. It was so good that unfortunately there were only enough leftovers for one big lunch or maybe two small lunches if you really stretch it!
Wow! My first recipe in my new Instant Pot and it turned out amazing. My husband and I loved it. I followed the recipe exactly as it was and it was delicious. Thank you!
Happy that you loved it 🙂 its always a hit!
If i couldn’t find no added sugar and i use regular orange juice with no pulp how much do i reduce from the sugar
I would skip the 1/4 cup of granulated sugar, or just use 1 tablespoon.
What is a serving size? It says serves 6 but not how much. Is it 1cup per serving? Thanks.
about 1 – 1 1/2 cups.
Tried making this today and I got then got “burn” message before it got up to pressure. I have an 8qt do I needn’t more liquid?
Did you deglaze the pot? You have to make sure that there is no stuff stuck to the bottom, otherwise it will burn. I didn’t have to add more liquid, but you can add 1/2 more of orange juice.
This looks so delicious!
I made this tonight for my first time using my instant pot. I had some technical issues simply because i was unfamiliar with how to use it.
Buuuuut this was a huge hit! My boys are 11,7,3,and 2 and they all loved it! I used the shiracha and it wasn’t too spicy. My husband loves it too.
Do you have a general tso recipe?!
I am very happy that you liked it!! Yes, I do have a General Too, here you go https://sweetandsavorymeals.com/instant-pot-general-tso-chicken/
Am I missing something or does this not say how much chicken?
it says 2 lb aka 2 pounds
Made this for dinner tonight and it was amazing! I added some bell pepper at the end along with the green onion and cooked them with the sauce. I think some pineapple added at the end would be good too! Thank you for this great recipe!!
Those are great additions Michelle! You should try my Instant Pot Sweet n Sour chicken recipe if you like pineapple and belle pepper 🙂
my instant pot doesnt have poultry setting (mini) is beef,stew about same ?
Just use high pressure for the time specified.
Hello! Just tried this for my first ip recipe. I really enjoyed it but have a question. The recipe says it makes 6 servings. I didnt see a serving size though. I only ask because the wife and i track what we eat. Thanks!
about 6 cups and I am so glad that you liked it!
What size instapot do you use? Do I need more liquid when cooking in my 8 qt size?
I use a 6qt IP, I dont think you need more liquid, to be safe you can add another 1/2 cup of Orange Juice.
This was my first IP meal and it was a hit! Now that I have the base recipe down I know the tweaks I’ll make next time. I put this over cauliflower rice and it was fantastic!!
I am so happy that you liked it! Yes, you can tweak it to your own liking 🙂
New to the instapot. Will this work in the “mini” version of the instapot lux series?
It should work, I haven’t tried it, but based on measurements, it should work.
First time using the instant pot, would it change the cook time if I used chicken thighs instead?
nope, same time!
Loved it & so did the hubs. It’s going to be in our regular rotation from now on. I switched the sugars to coconut palm sugar & only 1/3 c and thought that was just about right sweetness wise. Also added some green beans when I put in the corn starch. So good!! Than you for the recipe!!
Great idea with the green beans, thanks for the feedback 🙂
I’m really excited to try this recipe, I miss Orange Chicken from P.E. and this looks like it’s a close match. I do have one question, do you think I could substitute Honey for the Sugar? Thank you.
hi, yes you can, add the honey and taste and adjust the sauce for sweetness if you need more.
THANK YOU, Thank You, thank u! This was a huge hit, for all 7 of us to like it, I’d say that was a successful IP recipe! Only bad thing I can say is that there certainly ain’t no leftovers to enjoy later, not with my big family! Just found ur site, looking fwd to trying more of the recipes you’ve posted. This was only my 4th meal in my Crockpot Express Pot and fortunately, it was a success, first 2 times not so much. Definitely still getting over the learning curve so very grateful for great recipe sites such as yours. Gracias!
OMG you are so sweet! Thank you for this amazing comment, I am so happy to hear feedback and I am very glad that your family loved this recipe!
Made this tonight really enjoyed it – a little too much sauce – if I increase the chicken to 3lbs and keep the liquid the same do you think it will work? Same cooking time? Thank you I just got my instant pot today!
Yes, it should work 🙂 I am glad that you liked it!
Turned out really good! I used Xyla…a natural sweetener…no sugar!
Made it last night and it was delicious. I used the juice of an orange instead of orange juice. I just shared this recipe with a friend. Sharing is caring! Great job Catalina! Do you have other recipes?
Hi Patricia!! Thank you for the feedback, I use fresh orange juice sometimes too and I love the results! Thank you for sharing the recipe.
Yes, I have many more Instant Pot recipes, you can find them here https://sweetandsavorymeals.com/category/recipes/slow-cooker-pressure-cooker/
Still learning with my Instant Pot I got fir Christmas. Just made this tonight… HOME RUN! We loved it and hubby went for seconds – so it’s a keeper for sure! Thanks for the great recipe!
Thank you for the feedback! So happy that you enjoyed it!
I made this for the second time tonight. It’s a huge hit! Tonight, after I got the recipe half way made, I realized I didn’t have tomato sauce. I used a can of tomato soup instead and it worked great! It tastes basically exactly the same as the first time I made it. Just wanted to let the world know in case they run into the same problem!
That you Beth for the feedback and the great tip!
That is a great tip~I bought a case of tomato soup recently after my daughter went on a tomato soup kick. Apparently her craving was satisfied, because she hasn’t touched the case! This will be a good way to use it up (though I have already donated a bunch of it).
Tried this tonight and it turned out great! I used peanut oil, my go-to oil for anything remotely Asian. I added about a tablespoon fresh grated ginger, because I had it on hand, and would definitely recommend it in this. I subbed crushed red pepper instead of Sriracha for heat. And I mixed in some lightly steamed broccoli at the end (because my favorite restaurant version has broccoli). Best homemade orange chicken I’ve ever had!
thank you for the feedback! 🙂 I am very happy that you loved it!
would it be the same if I did a quick pressure release or do I need to wait the 10 minutes?
You need to wait 10 minutes, it is important, the chicken will be more rubbery if you don’t and also when you open the valve it may release some sauce.
Happy Thursday! I have a question . I prefer to brown my meat on the stove top, as opposed to the IP (yes, I know that somewhat defeats that “one pot” purpose). I can just brown a lot of meat faster way.
Here’s the question: When I brown outside of the pot, do I have to adjust cooking times or do anything special when I add the meat to the IP to make my recipe, as the pot is not yet heated (like it would have been if I browned the meat in the IP)?
Hi Mikel, yes, I love the stove from browning too, I said many times that the IP is probably not the best for this if you want a truly golden chicken. However, with that said, make sure you don’t over cook the chicken when you brown it on the stove. Also, you can easily make this recipe on the stove, others have tried it with success, brown the chicken and add the sauce ingredients, let it simmer for 5 minutes on low and add the cornstarch slurry and bring it to a boil.
If you want to use the IP, add the browned chicken and don’t adjust the cooking time, use 7min on High Pressure with a 10NPR. Hope this helps.
Catalina
We made this last night with pork instead of chicken, and it was very good.
This recipe looks super yummy! I want to take sugar out and substitute it….I tried looking in the comments didn’t see one but maybe I missed it. I was thinking of using honey to replace the white sugar and maple syrup to replace the brown sugar. And if so would the measurements be the same? Any thoughts or recommendations? TIA!!
I would use 1/3 cup honey and taste and adjust and if you need more, add 1/4 cup of maple syrup.
No big deal, but the fractions in the instructions don’t seem to add up for the OJ. We start out with 1 cup and add 2/3 cup, leaving 1/3 cup – but the instructions say to save the other half. Later, we add 1/4 cup of OJ. It’s all a bit confusing. 🙂
lol sorry juts updated those! thanks
Excellent! Made this last night with the addition of ginger and pineapple and it was fantastic. We were hoping for leftovers but it was too good to resist seconds! Looking forward to trying some more of your posted recipes. Thanks for sharing!
Happy that you liked it!
Could you use fresh squeezed orange juice for this recipe?
Yes, sure!
This looks awesome – can’t wait to try it! I have a couple of questions:
1) is lite soy sauce the same as low sodium soy sauce?
2) is there a substitute for rice wine?
Thank you
yes, low sodium and you can use dry white wine.
So my wife was wanting an instant pot. I got one yesterday and began looking for recipes online. I came across this one (and I LOVE orange chicken) and decided I’d make it for lunch today. Nothing but clean plates afterward. This was by far superior to any Chinese restaurant’s orange that I’ve ever eaten. I’m also a huge fan of General Tso’s chicken and saw that you have a recipe for that…. YESSS!!!! Thanx
so happy that you loved it!
What do I do if I don’t have rice wine? I couldn’t find it at the grocery store. I wanted to make this tonight but not sure what to do about the rice wine substitute. Thanks!
You can use dry white wine.
Made this tonight. This was the first time using my ip. I did not add the tomato sauce, and I only used 1/4 cup of sugar. I also added garlic chili sauce for the spice. It was delicious!
so glad that you liked it!
This is simple to make, quick, and delicious. I used coconut aminos instead of soy sauce and it turned out great. It’s a keeper recipe for this household.
Yum! thanks for the feedback 🙂
I cooked this tonight. My second instant pot meal. Your photos, instructions, and videos made this meal a delicious success! We had over brown rice and broccoli on the side. I’m so glad to have found your site. Thank you for sharing your talent! I will definitely share this with friends and family! I made just as instructed.
Hi Pennie, you are so sweet and that you very much for taking the time to comment! You made my day! I work so hard to produce beautiful content and to make it easy for my readers to follow my recipes, that it makes me incredibly happy when I hear that it helped someone! Have a good one and stay in touch 🙂
I tried this recipe tonight as my first attempt at using an instant pot. It was delicious! My husband and I loved it, and my 2 year old actually asked if I would make it again tomorrow! Um, yeah, that was a first.
I didn’t have any rice wine, so I had to omit that ingredient but tried to follow the rest of the recipe closely, opting for organic chicken breasts, and including the tomato sauce.
I was a little skeptical that this would be as tasty as restaurant style (as in my experience that is usually breaded and less healthy), but I actually think I liked this better! Thanks so much for the recipe! I will definitely make this dish again.
Hi Carolyn! I am so happy that your family loved this recipes, especially that your toddler asked if you will make it again. My son also loves it and asks me to make it all the time for him. Thank you very much for your feedback and enjoy your IP. Definitely check my Pineapple Chicken recipe, kids go nuts for it!
I made this last night and it was perfection! Way better than any take out place! Adding this to the list to make again and again-thank you so much for a great recipe! Trying your sweet and sour chicken next as that is one of our all time favorites!!
Tried it tonight with brown rice. Love the flavour.
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I made this last night. I couldn’t find rice wine at the grocery store and didn’t have time to search elsewhere, so I just bought my favorite white wine, Kendall Jackson chardonnay. I know that’s not that dry, but it worked! Other than that I followed the recipe. Except I mistakenly doubled the Sriracha sauce. This was the first recipe in our Instant Pot. It was a little hot, but still delicious! After reading many of the comments, I’ll try to reduce the sugar by half. Orange Chicken was one of my favorites when we go out. That is breaded. This is not and I didn’t miss it one bit. My wife said that we should make this often. I will! Thank you
amazing dish!
Does it say anywhere how many people this serves?
Sorry! Just found it!!
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Just made this in 8 qt Power Cooker Plus (similar to Instant Pot). I used liquid aminos instead of soy sauce and 1/2 was tbs rice wine vinegar instead of rice wine since it seemed to have plenty of sweet to balance. Halved the brown sugar. Did not use tomato sauce but used the sriracha. Browned the chicken on the stove instead of in the cooker. This was DELICIOUS! Plenty of sauce. A huge hit! Can’t wait to make it again.
hi there 🙂 I am happy that you loved this dish, its always a hit 🙂 and so easy to make!
AM PREGATIT!SOTUL A RAMAS INCANTAT!MERSI!
Delicious flavor and my husband said, “Keep this recipe – it’s one to make again!” One question, though, many times when you order orange chicken, it’s has a crispy coating on it – did I miss a step or is this one without that crunchy bit? It’s hard to tell from your picture. Thanks!
Oh this one is not crunchy, I guess thats how it looks in photos because of the sauce 🙂
This was great! I fed this to 5 kids (one nine year old, three six year olds, and one three year old). Everyone liked it. I did 1/2 the sugar based on other reviews. I think it was probably even better with more sugar, but I loved it at 1/2 sugar. I used arrowroot starch instead of cornstarch.
Just finished my meal and yummmmmm. Only thing I’ll add next time is sesame seeds on top! Thank you for sharing!
Yes, I love sesame seeds on top!
I was wondering about using Panda Express orange chicken sauce. Only because my teenager loves their sauce. It would be healthier to cook the chicken this way instead of frying it.
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After reading all the rave reviews, I made this for dinner last night (as written but a little lighter on the garlic an hot sauce and 1 T of ginger paste). Excellent!! My husband loved it exactly as written. I mentioned adding some green pepper to the leftovers and he nixed it. I love green pepper so might give it a try. Thanks for the recipe. A winner in our house.
I’m making this recipe it’s in 5min pressure right now
So it’s good but way too sweet for all of us I may use less than half sugar next time.
Please stop posting these pictures as you are making me hungry! The dishes all look delicious and I like that the instapots reduce the cook time and make for low maintenance cooking. I think most people enjoy a home-cooked meal (and it’s not difficult to learn how to cook if you can read and/or watch a video), but they don’t have the time. I know someone who bought an instapot and they use it a lot. In fact, they’ve found some great recipes and have been on a cooking spree.
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Excellent recipe just as written. My family loved it
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Exceptional! Husband asked me to add it to my rotation of his favorites. I fresh squeezed my oranges and used liquid aminos in place of soy sauce but otherwise followed everything else – fresh grated ginger, garlic, orange zest, tomato sauce, shiracha, etc served over jasmine rice. Planning to make it for a friend (and her family) who’s having surgery. Thank you for blessing us all with this deliciousness!
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Turned out very tasty! Served it with rice and steamed broccoli. The only thing I changed was using 1/4 c of tomato sauce instead of 1/2 c. Great recipe!
This was a huge hit at my house! Thank you!!!
happy that you liked it 🙂
That was a delicious recipe, I followed it exactly except I went a little heavier on the ginger, I also took your advice and browned the chicken thighs on stovetop for that nice browned look. This is definitely going into one of the top rotations! Thanks!
I’m going to try it tonight but I’m a little confused. When do you add the orange juice because is has it with the sauce ingredients and then at the end with corn starch???? How can you mix with corn starch when you have already added the orange juice?
This dish was fabulous! I browned my chicken on the stovetop only because I was making brown rice in my Instant Pot at the same time. I thought the chicken was a bit dry because I kept it on the stove too long. I only had tomato paste and was happy to see in reviews that this worked fine mixed with water, and replaced the soy sauce with liquid aminos, and sesame oil in place of vegetable. I also added the tbsp of fresh ginger (I wouldn’t skip this, the flavor stood out wonderfully!), and only put in the 1/4 c of brown sugar, which we thought was plenty sweet! We added some frozen stir fry veggies at the end and lots of green onions. Funny that others made this for someone recovering from surgery, my boyfriend requested this as he is recovering from wrist surgery. I will definitely make this again!
so happy that you liked it, I also like how you adapted the dish 🙂
I received this recipe from a friend and have made it twice already. I mixed breast and thighs the first time, and just thighs the second time. Both came out wonderful. So easy and the combination of sweet and spicy is perfect. The bright orange taste really makes this dish!! It is a keeper for sure!!! Thank you!!
you have good friends 🙂 happy that you liked it 🙂
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Hi, I am trying to see how to adjust cooking times if you are using bone in drumsticks? Looks like it should be 22 mins, (in the instantpot), does that sound right to you? Thank you
If you sauce them before cooking, you will need to do High Pressure 10 mins and a 10 Minute NPR, after that remove the drumsticks. click Saute and add the cornstarch. You can broil the drumsticks for 2 minutes if you want, before adding them back to the pot.
That was quite good, thanks! I did notice that my chicken pieces (thigh meat) ended up falling apart. So I didn’t see chunks of meat like in your photo. It was more like a shredded chicken. I will try chicken breast next time to see if I get different results.
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This was delicious and very simple to make. Thank you for the recipe. I used a tightly packed 1/8 cup dark brown sugar and it was plenty sweet but my orange juice was from concentrate if that makes a difference. I used pre-minced ginger and very little Sriracha but then I enjoyed dousing mine with more Sriracha after.
Thank you Cat!
This orange chicken recipe is awesome!
Thank you so much for sharing it.
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Very good, but I did have a problem maybe you could help me with. I dried my chicken but it rendered so much liquid as I tried to sauté. So I let it dry in the pot and sadly it over cooked the chicken and it got stringy. Your thoughts?
I’m preping the ingredients now, and was wondering about how much orange zest do you use? The oranges at the store today were HUGE and I can’t imagine using all of it.
Use about 1 tablespoon.
I won’t buy the frozen stuff from Costco any more. This recipe is by far so much better! I keep a fresh root of ginger in my freezer that is cut up in pieces and this makes it a cinch to grate up a tablespoon for dishes like this after a quick run under the hot water faucet and peeling it. Thank you for sharing this! My family loved it!
I am so glad you liked this recipe!
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Very, very good; a winner for sure. I think this recipe screams for sweet peppers. Next time. The only changes I made was in using Basmati rice (It’ what I had), and cooking it in a 50/50 water and OJ mix. I used my homemade tomato sauce, and halved the sugar, using a total of 1/4 cup of palm sugar.
Great suggestion on the sweet peppers! I am happy that you liked the recipe!
This made for an outstanding weekday dinner! I love that most of the ingredients are in my pantry/freezer/refrigerator at all times, the prep was super-easy, and the flavours absolutely extraordinary. I prepared it exactly as written the first time, then tweaked it tonight with a tablespoon of toasted sesame oil added to the sauce and about 3/4 cup of sliced mixed sweet peppers added along with the slurry. They cooked slightly that way, but remained crisp. My husband–who is relentlessly suspicious of new dishes–requested that this be added to our “rotation” of favourite recipes. High praise, indeed! An unexpected bonus is that the post-cooking aroma fills the house with the most heavenly orange-cinnamon scent…
I am very happy that you loved this recipe!
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Just made this recipe tonight. A keeper—will definitely make again. Easy, tasty. The orange sauce is very flavourful. Thanks so much.
Love this idea for a weeknight dinner! I need to try this!
The cutest summer recipe, honestly.
The instant pot seems to make the easiest dinners! I need one!
I love the flavors together!
Thank you so much! This recipe is AMAZING!
I have to admit that this has turned into my most favored dish. I did make a minor change. I no longer keep brown sugar in the cabinet. I use molasses and add it to my own taste, since brown sugar is only molasses and sugar. However, I was pretty sure the brown sugar was a sub for hoisin sauce and sugar. Not everyone keeps hoisin sauce around but we eat a LOT of Asian foods from Chinese to Japanese to Korean etc. Then for Chinese we eat a lot of Hunan, Mongolian, etc. AnI keep a tiny jar in the fridge and so I added a small scoop of that and measured a 1/2 c. granulated sugar. I could definitely taste the hoisin but it gave it a great authentic flavor. It was still very delicious!
Unfortunately, I have an instant pot that stinks. By now so many are aware at how bad the Ultra is and naturally that’s the one I got. It just doesn’t pressurize properly… EVER… since I’ve owned it. I’m not alone. I used this recipe the first time I used the IP. It turned out dry and scorched the bottom but it was incredibly delicious. We just had to add more liquid when it was over.
So! Any suggestions on how to cook on the stove top or slow cooker? I think I can still use the IP as a slow cooker but I haven’t tried. I am sick to death though because I ditched my slow cooker that I LOVED and now may have nothing at all.
Making this recipe again tonight as it was a huge hit in my house a few weeka ago!! Flavors are amazing and the instant pot just makes it so easy! Thank you for sharing!!
Glad that you like it Amber!
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Tried this last night. I was a little skeptical when it looked so juicy before the cornstarch but it really thickened up nicely. It was so delicious! I have to stop myself from making it again tonight! Can’t wait to try some of your other recipes!
Delicious! Recommended by a friend as a ‘Must Try’ in my new Instant Pot. Every member of my family loved it. 5Stars
Made this for dinner last night with rice and steamed broccoli. The family loved it, even my picky eaters. I decreased the amount of sugar by omitting the granulated sugar entirely and cutting the brown sugar in half (so I only added 1/8 cup) and it was just fine. I served it with red pepper flakes and hot sauce on the side b/c not everyone likes it spicy. It was a big hit and I’ll definitely be making it again. It’s great to have a gluten free Chinese themed dinner to turn to – I made it gf by using tamari sauce in place of the soy sauce.
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This was the best orange chicken I’ve ever had. I didnt use tomato paste. I did a huge no no. I bought bone in skin on thighs. Ugh. Took so long to cut. I wont make that mistake againt. I also browned on stovetop. Next time I will be tripling this recipe for my gang. 2 lbs of chicken was enough for 2 people…not 6. I added rice to help feed all the hungry men in my family.
This looks delicious 😋! Will the cooking time be the same if I half the recipe? Can I half the recipe? Thank you 😊! Can’t wait to try this!
You can use half the chicken, but still same amounts for sauce, as it needs enough liquid to come to pressure, maybe reduce the orange juice a bit. Cooking time stays the same.
simple and delicious, love IP!
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Hi I’m making this tonight and forget to get tomato sauce. If I use tomato paste how much should I use ?
tomato sauce is optional, many make the recipe without it, you can use 1 tablespoon of tomato paste for flavor.
Tried this tonight! We love this!!!! I will leave out the tomato sauce next time but I wanted to make this exactly as listed first the maybe change it depending on taste. My 12 year old loves it and he doesn’t like half of what I make lol.
This recipe is a hit with kids 🙂 glad that you guys enjoyed it!
This was the first dinner I made in my new Instant Pot, and WOW – I will admit that it is one of the most delicious meals ever! The chicken is so tender, and the flavor is great. I used 1/4 cup maple syrup instead of the sugars. I’d like to try it with honey next time instead of the syrup, but the syrup gave it another layer of flavor with the maple. I also used Frank’s hot sauce instead of Siriacha since I prefer that flavor, and it added just the right amount of heat. I’ll definitely be making this again soon!
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This recipe is so good, that my husband and son request it weekly. Delicious, easy, and healthy!! I serve on top of brown rice or riced cauli. So good with fresh zested orange.
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Hi there!
Thank you for sharing this yummy recipe! I followed it pretty much the same except, instead of tomato sauce I added a couple squirts of ketchup! Ive made it twice now and it turns out perfect! My only suggestion is if you’re planning on cooking for more than 3, double the recipe!
Hi Susan, thank you for the great feedback 🙂
This is an absolutely terrific dish, and very easy to make. This will be a regular in our household. Thank you so much for sharing this.
I am very happy that you liked it 🙂