Orange chicken made in the Instant Pot! Tender pieces of chicken coated in a savory, sweet, and sour sauce. This take-out favorite can easily be made in one pot in about 30 minutes.
My Instant Pot has been getting a workout lately. It’s been such a time saver for me to cook our meals in there. I can dump everything in and have a few spare moments to do something else. Before my rice is even finished cooking, the chicken is already ready.
Normally when you order orange chicken at a restaurant, they deep fry the chicken first. This version is healthier since the chicken isn’t deep fried, but it still has a very flavorful sauce that makes this dish quite delicious.
This smelled amazing as I was waiting for the quick release. I burned my tongue a little because I was too impatient to taste it. But it was totally worth it. You can taste the orange juice in the sauce, along with sweet and sour notes.
Ingredient Notes
- The ketchup provides both color and acidity. It adds a hint of sour vinegar, without turning the sauce into a sweet and sour sauce. It also helps make the sauce a deeper orange color.
- The sriracha also helps the color of the sauce and adds a very tiny bit of heat.
- If you wish for a more savory sauce, you can substitute the low sodium soy sauce with regular soy sauce.
- You can use chicken breast but I prefer chicken tenders as the meat stays more tender.
Cooking Notes
- I have only tested this recipe with my Instant Pot DUO60 6 Qt 7-in-1 Multi-Use Pressure Cooker.* Different models and sizes of the Instant Pot may require different cooking times.
- Make sure to sear the chicken first, which will keep it from falling apart when pressurized.
*Some of the product links contained in this post are affiliate links. Much like referral codes, this means I earn a small commission if you purchase a product I referred (at no extra charge to you).
Instant Pot Orange Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 1 ½ lb chicken tenders cut into 1 ½ inch cubes
- 2 green scallions thinly sliced
sauce
- 1/2 cup chicken stock
- 1 cup orange juice
- 1/2 tbsp orange zest
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tsp grated ginger
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tsp sriracha sauce
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 3 tbsp cornstarch + 3 tbsp water
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, add all your sauce ingredients (except the cornstarch + water) and whisk until smooth.
- Coat the bottom of the inner pot of your Instant Pot with oil the canola oil. Add in chicken. Set Insant Pot on saute function and lightly sear the exterior of your chicken.
- Pour sauce over your chicken. Seal your Instant Pot and set to manual mode, high pressure for 3 minutes. When the Instant Pot is finished, do a quick release so that the chicken does not overcook. Chicken should be cooked and tender when you open your Instant Pot.
- In a small bowl, completely dissolve cornstarch in water. Add to your sauce and immediately whisk it in to dissolve it (if you don't whisk it in right away, the cornstarch will clump up). Then turn your Instant Pot back to saute function and stir the sauce until it thickens. Be careful not to cook the sauce too long as it will cause your chicken to overcook. Garnish with scallions. Serve immediately with rice or other base of your choosing.
Notes
- I used the Instant Pot DUO60 6 Qt 7-in-1 Multi-Use Programmable Pressure Cooker* to make this recipe. I have only tested this recipe with this Instant Pot and cooking times may vary on different models.
- You can use chicken breast but I prefer chicken tenders as the meat stays more tender.
- Make sure to sear the chicken first, which will keep it from falling apart when pressurized.
- The ketchup provides both color and acidity. It adds a hint of sour vinegar, without turning the sauce into a sweet and sour sauce. It also helps make the sauce a deeper orange color.
- The sriracha also helps the color of the sauce and adds a very tiny bit of heat.
- If you wish for a more savory sauce, you can substitute the low sodium soy sauce with regular soy sauce.
- *Some of the links contained in this post are affiliate links. Much like referral codes, this means I earn a small commission if you purchase a product I referred (at no extra charge to you).
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
This was so good!! The prep took quite a while, with me zesting a couple oranges and juicing six (we used blood oranges from our tree), but after that the rest was pretty easy and the result was great.
We used microwave Asian stir fry veggies as a base, instead of rice. Also, I didn’t have chicken stock on hand so used garbanzo bean liquid (aquafaba) instead.
The fresh blood orange juice sounds so good! We’re so glad you loved the recipe.
When the recipe said to mix all the sauce ingredients, I did – including the cornstarch, because it’s listed under the sauce ingredients. Then when I got to step #3, I saw that I was supposed to add the cornstarch then. 🙁 Would you be able to fix the step #1 to say “add all your sauce ingredients EXCEPT the cornstarch and water”? I think that would help others like me. Thank you!
I’m sorry for the error. The cornstarch and water were supposed to be listed separately but the formatting caused it to look like it is part of the sauce list. It has now been corrected.
You mentioned cornstarch in step 4 but it is not listed in the ingredients list. How much cornstarch and how much water? thanks!
the cornstarch is the last sauce ingredient. hope that helps!
Looks amazing!! This will make a perfect weekend dinner. Thanks so much
Hope you enjoy!