I bookmarked a recipe for Annie’s Orange Chicken because the photo looked so delicious and I love orange and chicken together. I only glanced at the recipe briefly so didn’t notice until I was about to try making it that you have to fry the chicken in oil. I didn’t want to do that because a) it makes it less healthy, b) I’m lazy, and c) I’m a little scared of cooking with hot oil since Tony told me the story of how he burned down his kitchen that way. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure that it tastes wonderful when fried in oil and I may try it someday, but this particular day I decided to bake the chicken. I also altered the recipe quite a bit as I went, but luckily I wrote down the changes I made so I could share it on here if it turned out well. It certainly did turn out well and got rave reviews from the whole family, so I’m sure glad I recorded what I did. Tony especially liked this chicken and actually said it was one of the best meals I’ve made. Wow! You gotta love that review.

Baked Orange Chicken

1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup orange juice (freshly squeezed if possible)
1 1/2 tsp finely grated orange zest
3 tbsp rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp soy sauce
4 tbsp brown sugar
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 tbsp corn starch
1 tbsp water

Preheat oven to 400F. Combine broth, juice, orange zest, vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic and ginger in a small bowl. Place chicken in a greased baking dish and pour orange mixture over top. Bake for 40 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink inside.
Remove chicken and keep warm. Pour sauce into a small saucepan and bring to boil over medium-high heat. In a small bowl mix together cornstarch and water, then add to sauce. Cook until sauce is thick, then pour it over the chicken. Serve over rice.