Instant Pot Orange Chicken

Step 1

Marinate Chicken: Place 2 lbs chicken thighs in a mixing bowl. Add ¼ tsp (1.6g) salt, ¼ tsp (1.4g) sugar, ½ tsp (1.5ml) sesame oil, and 2 tbsp (30ml) regular soy sauce to the chicken. Mix well and marinate for at least 25 minutes.

Step 2

Saute Onions and Garlic: Heat up Instant Pot using Sauté More function. Wait until it says HOT (~8 mins). Drizzle the inner pot with 1 tbsp (15ml) peanut oil or vegetable oil. Add onions & ginger, then saute until soften (~2 mins). Add chopped garlic cloves, then saute for another 30 seconds.

Step 3

Deglaze Instant Pot: Pour in 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry wine/water), then completely deglaze the bottom of the pot.

Step 4

Pressure Cook Orange Chicken: Add ½ cup (125ml) unsalted chicken stock, ⅓ cup (90ml) orange juice, and 6g orange zest in Instant Pot. Mix well. Add marinated chicken in Instant Pot. Pressure Cook at High Pressure for 6 minutes + 10 minutes Natural Release.

Step 5

Thicken & Season: Set aside the chicken. Bring the liquid mixture back to a boil using the Saute button. Taste and season with salt (for reference, we added 3 pinches of salt). Depending on your orange’s sweetness level, add roughly 2 tbsp (30g) honey to sweeten the orange sauce. Mix 2.5 tbsp (22.5g) cornstarch with 3 tbsp (45ml) cold water in a small mixing bowl. Add the cornstarch mixture one third at a time to thicken the orange sauce until desired thickness.

Step 6

Optional - Broil in Oven: In an oven tray, generously coat the chicken with the orange sauce. Place oven tray under the broiler for 5 – 7 minutes until the chicken skin is browned.

Step 7

Serve: Drizzle more yummy orange sauce on the chicken, then serve Instant Pot Orange Chicken with your favorite side dishes. Enjoy!~ :)