So I’ve realized we eat a lot of chicken in my house. I honestly try and mix it up but I always come back to chicken. Tenders, shredded, salad, soup, on a bun, breasts, pasta-ed, casserolled…I mean there’s chicken everywhere round here.
Oven-Baked Orange Chicken RecipeHow to Make Orange Chicken in a Skillet:Get the Recipe
I heard that they say pork is the “other white meat”. I really need to get on board with that, because I think we all might start growing feathers any day now. Weird.
Oven-Baked Orange Chicken Recipe
Anyhow, I’m always looking for new chicken recipes. And in this case it’s a new recipe for me, but it’s actually an old old one from a cookbook the PTA put together for a fundraiser when I was in Elementary school. My mom saved it and I have to say it’s one of my most favorite cookbooks to cook from. Everything is gloriously filled with condensed soup and imitation crab and called “Glorious” and “Surprise”. I lover love it. But then there buried within the microwave recipes and jello molds are little treasures like this Orange Chicken. At first glance of the title I assumed it would be an Asian-type dish, but it isn’t! It’s a baked chicken with tons of flavor that tastes like it’s been fried, when it’s only been baked. Of course I switched it up a bit and added some spice, as well as baking it in cast iron skillet. You guys are gonna love this!
How to Make Orange Chicken in a Skillet:
Again, I used my skillet for this one. It’s a 10-incher. I use it so so much… But if you don’t have a skillet, the original recipe was made using a baking dish. I think a 9×13 would be fine. First go ahead and juice some oranges. For sure you don’t HAVE to use fresh OJ…but really it’s a simple step and it’s just better. Plus, the citrus right now is ridicky. Then zest some of your oranges to add into your breadcrumb mixture. I used (bone-in) chicken thighs in this recipe, because I love thighs, but I know you could do this with breasts, legs or even boneless thighs or breasts…you’ll just have to adjust the bake time a bit. Dip your thighs in a mixture of your fresh OJ and lightly beaten eggs and then into a breadcrumb mixture that I amped up with the zest, thyme, smoked paprika and cayenne! Melt some butter your skillet and then place your breaded thighs in the skillet, turning them to coat them in the butter. I threw in my orange rinds to add a bit of extra flavor and also because it’s pretty. Pop them in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Flip the thighs over and bake for another 20 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. They will be crispy and super flavorful! They taste like they’ve been deep fried…but WAY less work and tons more flavor!
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