Instant Pot Orange Chicken Recipe

Get ready to make the BEST Instant Pot Orange Chicken recipe with fresh orange juice and easy-to-find Asian ingredients. This Chinese classic is ready in just 30 minutes and makes way less mess than frying in a skillet! It’s a picky eater dinner favorite and can easily be adapted to be gluten-free and dairy-free, if needed.

Easy Instant Pot Orange Chicken

Who doesn’t love an easy take-out dinner? But you’re often left feeling uncomfortable and bloated.

Next time you’re craving Chinese take-out, skip the line, save your money, and make this Orange Chicken recipe in the Instant Pot.

You get all the flavor you love from your favorite Chinese restaurant, but it’s MUCH healthier. Your wallet will thank you, too.

This recipe just might be the perfect weeknight meal! It’s easy to make, the kids will love it, and it takes very little hands-on time.

Why We Love this Orange Chicken Recipe

• Ready and on the table in 30 minutes.
• Way fewer dishes and less mess compared to cooking it in a skillet.
• Picky eaters will love it!
• Better for you than a restaurant with healthy, natural ingredients, including fresh oranges.

Ingredients

• Chicken. One pound of chicken breasts is tenderized and then cut into bite-size pieces. You can also opt for thighs if you want even more flavor.
• Starch or Flour. This gives the chicken a nice coating so it can get crispy in the Instant Pot. Use tapioca starch if on a Paleo or Whole30 diet, or a gluten-free 1-to-1 blend if not.
• Oranges. Fresh orange juice and orange zest really pump up the flavor and natural sweetness in this dish.
• Garlic & Ginger. It’s best if you use both FRESH garlic cloves and fresh ginger. I like to buy the jars of ginger paste from the produce section so I can easily scoop out what I need.
• Sweetener. Pure maple syrup is used as the sweetener in this recipe, but coconut sugar, brown sugar, or even honey can be substituted.
• Chili Garlic Paste. Depending on how spicy you like your orange chicken, you can use anywhere from 1 to 2 teaspoons.
• Soy Sauce. Regular soy sauce, gluten-free soy or Tamari sauce, or coconut liquid aminos can all be used interchangeably.

How to Make Instant Pot Orange Chicken

Please see the recipe card below for more detailed ingredient amounts.

1. Prepare the Chicken

In order to get the most juicy and tender chicken, you’ll want to tenderize the chicken breasts before cooking.

It may seem like an unnecessary additional step, but trust me: you’ll get melt-in-your-mouth chicken if you do this!

After you’ve pounded it to about 1-inch thick, cut the chicken into similarly sized 1-inch cubes. Add the chicken to a bowl and toss with the starch or flour, salt, and pepper until it is completely coated.

2. Make the Orange Sauce

The key ingredient to this orange sauce recipe is that you MUST use FRESH orange juice and zest.

Please make sure you DO NOT skimp and buy the orange juice from concentrate. The dish just won’t taste NEARLY as good. Also, make sure you ZEST the oranges before juicing.

Add the orange juice, zest, soy or Tamari sauce, maple syrup, and chili paste to a medium sized bowl and whisk to combine.

You can store this healthy orange sauce in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days if meal prepping ahead of time.

3. Add to the Instant Pot

I have the Instant Pot Duo Plus 6-quart, 9-in-1, and it works for just about any and every use you can imagine!

However, if you think you will be making A LOT of bone broth, or enormous batches of soup, you might want to look into the Instant Pot Duo Plus 8-quart.

Set the Instant Pot to the Sauté function, then carefully add the oils, garlic, and ginger. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes.

Stir in the cubed chicken and sauté for another 2 to 3 minutes. Pour the orange sauce mixture over the chicken, being sure to get some of the sauce ingredients under the chicken pieces so it doesn’t burn.

One of the most common mistakes people run into when making this recipe is the dreaded burn notice.

To avoid this, make sure you thoroughly scrape the bottom of the Instant Pot with a wooden spoon before pressure cooking.

If any bits of food are stuck, the Instant Pot will think it’s burning and not allow you to cook your chicken.

4. Pressure Cook and Serve

Place the lid on the Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker, being sure to set the steam release valve to closed. Set a manual timer to cook on high pressure for 5 minutes. When it’s done, allow for a 10-minute natural release of the pressure before opening the pressure valve.

Then, turn off the Instant Pot and open the pressure valve for a quick release of the remaining pressure. Be careful of steam!

Serve the orange chicken over white rice or cauliflower rice with sesame seeds and green onions.

What to Serve with Orange Chicken

When you’re ready to dig into this healthy orange chicken recipe, all you need is rice and maybe some veggies to round it out.

Choose your favorite rice, like White Rice, Cauliflower Rice, Jasmine Rice, or Basmati Rice. You can also make your own Chicken Fried Rice.

Green veggies like Steamed Broccoli, Chinese Green Beans, or Roasted Asparagus are healthy, or opt for Air Fryer Carrots.

More Easy Asian Dinner Favorites

Skip the takeout and whip up any of these Asian favorites next time the craving strikes.

• General Tso’s Chicken
• Mongolian Beef
• Instant Pot Yellow Chicken Curry
• Thai Basil Chicken
• Honey Garlic Chicken Stir-Fry
• Thai Yellow Chicken Curry with Carrots and Potatoes
• Cashew Chicken Stir-Fry