Slow Cooker Orange Chicken–make a flavorful, restaurant-style orange chicken at home in your slow cooker.
Slow Cooker Orange Chicken
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
Make a flavorful, restaurant-style orange chicken at home in your slow cooker.
Ingredients
Scale
- Zest from one large orange
- 1/4 cup orange juice
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce (I used low sodium)
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 Tbsp diced green onions
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut each thigh into about 6 pieces
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 Tbsp canola oil
- For garnish, diced green onions and sesame seeds
Instructions
- In a bowl, whisk together the zest, orange juice, lemon juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, green onions and red pepper flakes. Set aside.
- Blot the pieces of chicken with a thick paper towel. You’ll want to get as much moisture off of the chicken as possible.
- Combine flour, salt and pepper in resealable food storage bag. Add chicken. Shake to thoroughly coat with flour mixture.
- Heat oil in a pan over medium high heat. When oil is hot, brown the chicken about 2 minutes on each side. You may need to work in batches. Once you have finished browning the meat add it into your slow cooker.
- Whisk the orange juice mixture one last time and then pour it over the chicken. Cover the slow cooker and cook on low 2 hours.
- Once the chicken has cooked serve it over rice. Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds. Enjoy!
Notes
I used my Ninja Cooking System with Auto-iQ for this recipe.
- Method: Slow Cooker
When do you add the sauce? I’m assuming when you transfer the chicken from the pan to the crockpot while it is cooking on low for 2 hours, but I have done a similar recipe that indicated to wait until the end of the slow cook time.
Right after you add the chicken into the slow cooker add in the orange juice mixture and cook on low for 2 hours.
Is this just 2 hours on low?
Yes that is correct because they are small pieces they cook quickly
Did I miss nutrition values?
Just added them!
I am going to cook this with a slow cooker because I only have an QT insta pot (not Pressure), and there are really not many ideas for this system. Can this be cooked in the QT pot
It can be cooked in any slow cooker. I am not familiar with the QT but I’m sure it would work if it is a slow cooker.
Have not made this yet, but I was wondering could I double or triple the sauce. We like a lot of sauce on our rice.
yes for sure!
This is SO GOOD. It works. I used a Crock Pot. A Large Crock Pot. Its mostly about planning. I really could not believe how super good this is.
★★★★★
Glad you liked it Steven!
Can this be made with rice on bottom? I’ve done other dishes with basmati and risotto on bottom and meats on rack above?
You certainly could try! I haven’t played around with it enough to know how it would work. Let me know!
YOU WOULD HAVE TO USE COOKED RICE OR THE WATER FROM THE RICE WOULD THIN THE SEASONING AND SAUCE DOWN. PRECOOKED RICE MAY ALSO NEED ENOUGH MOISTURE SO AS NOT TO DRY OUT DURING COOKING.
This has become my favorite slow cooker recipe. Try it and you won’t be disappointed!👍
Glad to hear this Holly!
Interesting! I haven’t heard of this. So apart from the fact it isn’t a pressure cooker, how does it compare to the Instant Pot? I’m assuming you wouldn’t replace an Instant Pot with it. Is it just a much better slow cooker? I like that it can be an oven too so it replaces an electric roaster?
Hi Tara, yes it is really interesting! It isn’t a pressure cooker like you said but it is oval shaped which I really appreciate because you can fit odd cuts of meats. It also has a nonstick cooking surface which is really easy to clean. I haven’t slow cook function much with the Instant Pot so I can’t really compare those two functions. It is a great tool to have in your kitchen and has many uses.
Any recipe that include sugar get only one star from me.
Sugar should never be in any food. Sugar is dangerous to the humans.
Sugar will be the second worst choice in life after tobacco.
Brown sugar is different
Thank you…. absolutely correct…
Looks DELICIOUS! Can you do this in the instant pot?
I couldn’t figure out a good way to make it yet in the Instant Pot.
This looks so good! Can I make it in my Instant Pot? I know nothing about the Ninja system. Thanks!
Hi Linda, I’ve tried two different times to make this in the Instant Pot and I failed both times. Here’s what I would do if I tried it again. I would do the flour step with the chicken. Then I would heat the pot with the saute function and I would brown the chicken. Then I would place the chicken in a pot/dish that fits inside your instant pot and pour the orange juice mixture over the top. Then I would clean out the bottom of the instant pot and put one cup water in it. I would place the pot (with the chicken) inside the pot on top of a trivet. Manual high pressure for 8 minutes, 10 minute NRP. Like I said, I’m not sure if this would work but I think it’s the only way.
.
Looks like my reply didn’t post. I’ll try again..
When you tried the IP did you use the slow cooker function? Do you think it would work better to brown the chicken first on the stove and use a real slow cooker or the IP?
I really appreciate all the work you put in your recipes trying to make them the best they can be!
Ohhhh, sorry Linda I thought you were asking if you could pressure cook this recipe. I think you could totally use the slow cooker function. Not on the lowest setting though…since that one is like warm. I would just brown in the bottom of the IP and then pour in the sauce and then use the slow cooker button.