This better than takeout sweet and tangy Keto Orange Chicken made in the air fryer is a quick and easy dinner that tastes just like the restaurants! It’s sugar-free, low carb, and keto friendly!
Like many people, I’m an orange chicken fan, especially from Panda Express! This healthy orange chicken recipe will have you enjoying the popular dish guilt-free!
If you’re looking for keto Chinese food, this one is a good start!
What is Keto Orange Chicken?
Keto Orange Chicken is a Panda Express copycat that has all the flavors of a traditional orange chicken dish without all the carbs. All ingredients used in this keto orange chicken as well as the recipe for orange sauce are low carb and keto-friendly.
A lot of recipes use vinegar, however, we don’t feel like it’s necessary for this keto orange chicken
What ingredients do I need to make keto orange chicken?
- Chicken Thigh – about 3-4 boneless skinless chicken thighs. You can very slight sprinkle salt if preferred.
- Egg – beaten and used as a binder.
- Unflavored Pork Rinds – purchase unflavored pork rinds and place in a food processor or you can purchase pre-ground pork rinds such as Pork Panko.
- Green Onion – finely chopped.
- Chicken Broth – any type of regular chicken broth in a can or tetra pack will work.
- Orange Zest – zest of one organic orange.
- Garlic Cloves – grated using a hand grater.
- Ground Ginger – fresh ground ginger using a grater.
- Sweetener – use your preferred sweetener.
- Soy Sauce – low sodium preferred. For gluten-free you can use tamari or coconut aminos.
- Sriracha – hot chili paste.
- Black Pepper – fresh or pre-ground
- Xanthan Gum – a low carb and keto friendly thickener.
How do you make keto-style Chinese orange chicken?
Dredge chicken in beaten egg and crushed pork rinds, then air fry for 8-10 minutes. Toss with orange chicken sauce and sprinkle with chopped green onions or sesame seeds. Enjoy with a side of cauliflower rice for the ultimate low carb and keto friendly meal.
What type of chicken is orange chicken?
You can use thigh chicken pieces or chicken breast to make orange chicken. Thigh will yield a juicier, softer chicken while breast will be a tad more dry and tough.
How many carbs are in orange chicken?
This version of keto, low carb orange chicken has 3g net per serving, but traditional versions have 45-50g per serving.
What is the nutrition information for this keto orange chicken recipe?
- 782 Calories
- 4g Carbohydrates
- 1g Fiber
- 68g Protein
- 53g Fat
- 345mg Cholesterol
- 2247mg Sodium
- 580mg Potassium
- 49mg Calcium
- 3mg Iron
- 356ui Vitamin A
- 8mg Vitamin C
Looking for other keto Chinese food?
- Kung Pao Chicken Stir Fry
- Sweet Chili Chicken
- Black Pepper Chicken Panda Express Copycat
- Honey Walnut Shrimp
- Beef & Broccoli Stir Fry
Now, let’s get making this Keto Orange Chicken recipe!
- Prepping Time 7M
- Cooking Time 8M
- Total Time 15M
- Net Carb/Serv ~3g
- Servings 2
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1 lbs Boneless Chicken Thigh (about 3-4 small thighs)
- 1 Egg
- 3 oz Unflavored Pork Rinds (1/3 Cup if using Pork Panko)
- 1 Stalk Green Onion
Sauce
- 1/2 Cup Chicken Broth
- 1 tsp Orange Zest
- 2 Garlic Cloves
- 1/4 tsp Fresh Ground Ginger
- 2 tbsp Sweetener (sugar alternative or preferred sweetener)
- 2 tbsp Soy Sauce
- 1/2 tsp Sriracha
- 1/8 tsp Black Pepper
- 1/8 tsp Xanthan Gum
Directions
1) Gather all the ingredients.
2) Use a zester to zest orange peel and place into a mixing bowl.
3) Grate garlic with a grater or garlic press and add it into the same mixing bowl.
4) Grate ginger with a grater and add it into the same mixing bowl.
5) Now combine chicken broth, sweetener, Soy Sauce, Sriracha and black pepper into the same mixing bowl and mix well.
6) Transfer sauce to a Teflon frying pan and bring to a boil on high heat. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and sprinkle in Xanthan Gum. Reduce for about 2-3 minutes or until thickened while continuously mixing to dissolve Xanthan Gum. Once thickened, remove from heat and let it cool.
7) Cut chicken into 1 x 1 inch cubes and set aside.
8) Pour Unflavored Pork Rinds into a food processor and pulse until ground into very fine. You can also use your hands to crush the pork rinds if you don’t have a food processor, but we strongly recommend using a food processor. Note – Skip this step if you are using Pork Panko.
9) Fill a mixing bowl with with beaten eggs and the another mixing bowl with crushed Unflavored Pork Rinds.
10) Take the cubed chicken and coat each piece of chicken in beaten eggs then into the crushed Unflavored Pork Rinds. Transfer coated chicken over to the air fryer rack and fry for 8-10 minutes at 390F.
11) In the meantime, chop up the green onions and set aside.
12) Once orange chicken is air fried, coat with reduced sauce from step 6), transfer to serving plate and sprinkle chopped green onions.
Hope you enjoy your Keto Orange Chicken!
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Keto Orange Chicken
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1 lbs Boneless Chicken Thigh about 3-4 small thighs
- 1 Egg
- 3 oz Unflavored Pork Rinds 1/3 cup if using pork panko
- 1 Stalk Green Onion
Sauce
- 1/2 Cup Chicken Broth
- 1 tsp Orange Zest
- 2 Cloves Garlic
- 1/4 tsp Fresh Ground Ginger
- 2 tbsp Sweetener sugar alternative or preferred sweetener
- 2 tbsp Soy Sauce
- 1/2 tsp Sriracha
- 1/8 tsp Black Pepper
- 1/8 tsp Xanthan Gum
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Use a zester to zest orange peel and place into a mixing bowl.
- Grate garlic with a grater or garlic press and add it into the same mixing bowl.
- Grate ginger with a grater and add it into the same mixing bowl.
- Now combine chicken broth, sweetener, Soy Sauce, Sriracha and black pepper into the same mixing bowl and mix well.
- Transfer sauce to a Teflon frying pan and bring to a boil on high heat. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and sprinkle in Xanthan Gum. Reduce for about 2-3 minutes or until thickened while continuously mixing to dissolve Xanthan Gum. Once thickened, remove from heat and let it cool.
- Cut chicken into 1 x 1 inch cubes and set aside.
- Pour Unflavored Pork Rinds into a food processor and pulse until ground into very fine. You can also use your hands to crush the pork rinds if you don’t have a food processor, but we strongly recommend using a food processor. Note – Skip this step if you are using Pork Panko.
- Fill a mixing bowl with with beaten eggs and the another mixing bowl with crushed Unflavored Pork Rinds.
- Take the cubed chicken and coat each piece of chicken in beaten eggs then into the crushed Unflavored Pork Rinds. Transfer coated chicken over to the air fryer rack and fry for 8-10 minutes at 390F.
- In the meantime, chop up the green onions and set aside.
- Once orange chicken is air fried, coat with reduced sauce from step 6), transfer to serving plate and sprinkle chopped green onions.
Video
Nutrition
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Hey Guys! This is exactly what I have been craving! I just picked up some “Better Than Rice” Konjac rice from Amazon and it will pair perfectly with your Orange Chicken recipe! Craving going to be satisfied!
Hey Natalie! So great to hear from you and hope you’re doing well! Sounds like konjac rice will go perfect and hope you like the recipe!
My daughter was missing Panda Express Orange Chicken, so I made this for dinner last night. My husband is Keto but the rest of us are on a regular diet. Everyone loved it! All I can say is that next time I will make more sauce. Yum!
Hi Julie! So glad to hear you all liked it!! It’s always awesome when everyone, keto or non-keto, enjoys the recipe!
I’ve made a low carb orange chicken recipe before and it had actual orange in it. May I suggest using sugar free orange marmalade. You can also use Orange flavoring extract.
Hi Carri! We thought about using extract but our philosophy is try to make simple recipes with limited calls for specialized ingredients. So if you have orange extract, by all means you can use that instead of orange zest.
Made this last night, super yummy! I tried one of the nuggets before sauce and I almost ate them like regular chicken nuggets. It’s been years since I used pork rind panko and let me tell you that using an air fryer is a game changer. The sauce is pretty darn good, but I must admit that orange chicken is not my first pick ever, so that’s on me. I will be keeping this recipe in heavy rotation for a while.
Great to hear you liked the orange chicken Meredith! Yup, air frying is def a game changer at LCA’s house!
Can u bake the chicken in the oven?
Hello – We’ve never tried in the oven, but it can be done.