Crock Pot Orange Chicken

Mmmmm, orange chicken at home. Chinese takeout at home! If you haven't visited Stephanie O'dea's slow-cooking blog, you might want to take a browse through. She made a goal to cook via a slow-cooker for one year. She did it and was so successful that she made a cookbook out of it!

This orange chicken is one of her recipes, but I actually found it via Sweet Tea in Texas.

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken, cut in 2-inch chunks
1/2 cup flour
olive oil, for browning the chicken
1 tablespoon kosher salt (If you are using iodized salt, I'd suggest using 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons)
6 ounces (1/2 can) frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed (little-to-no pulp. The pulp can taste a bit bitter when cooked)
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons ketchup

Directions

Use a 4 quart slow cooker for best results. Dredge the chicken pieces with the flour, and shake off the excess. Go ahead and throw away any remaining flour, we won’t need it. Heat olive oil in a large skillet on the stove and brown the chicken on all sides. There is no need to fully cook it, just sear it enough for the flour to stick and get a nice coating.

Plop the chicken pieces into your slow cooker. In a small mixing bowl, combine the orange juice concentrate, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, salt, and ketchup. Taste. If you’d like the chicken to be a bit sweeter, add a touch more sugar. Pour sauce mixture evenly over the chicken, and toss gingerly to coat.

Cover and cook on low for 6 hours, or on high for 3 to 4. Serve over white or brown rice.


Here are the suggestions that I would have:

If you like ORANGE chicken to taste like orange, then don't do a thing. This is the perfect recipe for you. I've read comments on several different blogs, and those who love orange flavor for their orange chicken love the taste of this recipe.

If you are expecting your orange chicken to taste more like Panda Express or perhaps your favorite Chinese restaurant, then there needs to be some changes made to this recipe. This recipe needs 6 ounces of orange concentrate, but perhaps 4 ounces of orange concentrate and 2 ounces of soy sauce might get you closer to the Panda Express type taste. I also think adding 1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger might be a nice addition as well.

I think You're Gonna Bake it After All had a great perspective on this recipe.

Additionally, I used a larger Crock Pot, and this really only took about an hour and half to cook. This isn't a recipe I'd prepare before work; just wait and do it as soon as you get home.

Devilish Sesame Chicken with Green Beans and Scallion Rice

I did not start eating Chinese food until college, I think, simply because I never knew I liked it! I don't remember the first time I had it, but now I love it! When I read through this recipe, I was confident I would love this recipe. Although, as I prepared the meal, I had my doubts. I need not have had those doubts because this is an absolutely delicious meal. My sous chef and I gobbled this one up!

This recipe comes from Rachael Ray's Big Orange book, but it is apparently also found in her Everyday Magazine. The portions of this recipe that I will list are those that come from her Big Orange Book, which is part of the 'Meals for One' chapter. Thus, the recipe listed below is meant for one, but the clickable recipe above is the portions for 4 servings.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
1/4 cup white rice
3/4 cup chicken stock
2 scallions, finely chopped
Salt
1 boneless skinless chicken breast, thinly sliced
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 teaspoon hot sauce
1 rounded teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon tamari (aged soy sauce)
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 teaspoons sesame seeds, toasted

Directions:
In a small skillet, heat 1/2 tablespoon of the oil over medium-high heat. Add the rice and toast for a minute or two, then add 1/2 cup of the chicken stock. Stir and reduce the heat to low, cover the pan with a small plate or aluminum foil, and cook until the rice is tender, about 17 minutes. Add the scallions to the rice in the last minute of cooking time.

Bring 1 inch of water to to a boil in a second small pan and salt it. Add the beans and cook for 2 minutes, then drain them and run them under cold water to set the green color. Set aside.

When the rice has cooked for about 8 minutes, heat the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of oil in a skillet over high heat until it ripples. Add the chicken and cook until it is lightly golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the bell pepper and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.

In a small bowl, mix together the hot sauce, mustard, tamari, honey, and the remaining 1/4 cup chicken stock.

Add the green beans to the chicken and peppers and toss for 1 minute. Pour the sauce over the chicken and vegetables and toss for a minutes or two to heat through. Remove from the heat and drizzle the sesame oil over the chicken.

Fluff the rice with a fork and transfer to a shallow bowl. Top with the chicken and garnish with the sesame seeds.
We were very impressed with the taste of freshness, the flavor filled rice, and the overall impressive taste of this recipe!

Oh, and HAPPY 70TH BIRTHDAY NANA!

General Tsao's Chicken

CHINESE FOOD! I've never really ventured into this realm of cooking except for the measly chicken fried rice recipe I've already given you. I was very nervous to try this, but Henry was very impressed after it was all said and done. Now, I won't lie to you. If you've never made chinese food, you'll probably find this a tedious and time consuming process. I'm sure part of this time consuming process was probably due to the amount of chicken we cooked, too. I'd suggest halfing this recipe or perhaps even fourthing it if you are making this meal for two. I discovered this recipe on Allrecipes.com, though it is possible that it can be found elsewhere. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/General-Tsaos-Chicken/Detail.aspx

It does ask for fresh ginger root, and fresh ingredients do make a difference. However, because I do not regularly cook or bake with ginger, I did take some help from McCormick's on this one. Additionally, I left out the MSG. I can't take it at Pei Wei, so I wasn't ready to use it at home. Otherwise, I made this recipe as it states, even the white pepper! This chicken was so fresh, moist, and tasty. Together with the chicken fried rice recipe, Henry and I had a WONDERFUL meal. I'd suggest making this for sure!

Weight Watchers Chicken Fried Rice

When I was living with my ever-so-health-conscious roomates in college, I discovered the healthier ways of eating. Thanks Jordan, Cynthia, Anne, and Carissa! :) Miss you all!!!

Well, I believe Carissa (or was it Cynthia?) had a wonderful Weight Watchers cookbook. I found a great chicken fried rice recipe in there, and I've made it several times in the past few years. Henry has really enjoyed it, so he decided to help me out...A LOT... this time.

If you are having a craving for Chinese but don't want that bloated "I ate a lot of salt" feeling, then you should really make this recipe! It's a wonderful way to satisfy the Chinese food craving.
Per http://www.weightwatchers.com/

Ingredients:
2 spray(s) cooking spray
4 large egg white(s)
1/2 cup(s) scallion(s), chopped, green and white parts
2 medium garlic clove(s), minced
12 oz uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup(s) carrot(s), diced
2 cup(s) cooked brown rice, regular or instant, kept hot
1/2 cup(s) frozen green peas, thawed
3 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce

Directions:

Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and set pan over medium-high heat. Add egg whites and cook, until scrambled, stirring frequently, about 3 to 5 minutes; remove from pan and set aside.

Offheat, recoat skillet with cooking spray and place back over medium-high heat. Add scallions and garlic; sauté 2 minutes. Add chicken and carrots; sauté until chicken is golden brown and cooked through, about 5 minutes.

Stir in reserved cooked egg whites, cooked brown rice, peas and soy sauce; cook until heated through, stirring once or twice, about 1 minute. Yields about 1 cup per serving.

Weight Watchers POINTS® Value: 3
Servings: 6
Preparation Time: 15 min
Cooking Time: 13 min