Vegan Orange Chicken
Orange chicken is a popular American style Chinese takeout dish. I’m from England but I always see videos of people from the US talking about orange chicken from panda express so I had to try and recreate the takeout classic. This vegan version uses tempeh- a high protein meat substitute made from soy beans.
The crispy, golden tempeh coated in the sticky, sweet and slightly sour Chinese style sauce served up with rice and stir fry vegetables is the perfect weeknight meal and can even be served up for lunch the next day from leftovers.
So whether you’re an American looking for a vegan and healthier alternative to orange chicken or someone from elsewhere in the world looking to try the famous orange chicken veganised, give this one a go!
Vegan panda express orange chicken ingredients and substitutes-
- Tempeh –Tempeh is a great protein packed plant based meat substitute if you fancy a more wholefoods version of your favourite takeaway dishes. Its made from soy beans like tofu but has more of a bite for texture and a slightly nutty flavour. It crisps up lovely when fried and carries a lovely sticky sauce well. You can also apply this recipe to tofu or your favourite fake meat also, the sauce is versatile so use whatever protein you like.
- Cornflour- Cornflour is great for coating the tempeh pieces helping them to go golden and crispy when fried in oil. The cornflour also doubles up as a sauce thickener helping the sauce to stick to the tempeh. This also goes in the sauce to thicken the extra sauce.
- Agave – Agave is a great vegan alternative to honey, its light and sweet. Agave can be found in most big supermarkets, health food stores or online. You could also use maple syrup or golden syrup.
- Rice vinegar- Rice vinegar is a vinegar made from rice wine, popular in East Asian cuisine. This adds a sour element to the dish that can be balanced out with the agave syrup. You can also use apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar if that’s what you have on hand.
- Garlic ginger paste- Garlic and ginger are essential aromatics for most East Asian and South Asian dishes. I use them so much that I always have a jar of both pastes or a mixed garlic and ginger paste in my fridge as I don’t have the patience to chop fresh garlic and ginger by hand! You can of course use fresh if you are more patience than me!
- Orange- In this recipe the juice and the zest are used so be sure to check that the orange is unwaxed as some wax is not vegan. This recipe can also be done with lemons in place of orange, making lemon ‘chicken’ instead of orange.
FAQ-
- How can I serve this?- I love this with sticky rice, soy sauce stir fried broccolini and pak choi for a healthy but delicious dinner.
- Can I make this spicy?- If you love spice feel free to add some chilli powder, chilli flakes or chilli oil to the sauce before cooking in the pan.
Chinese takeout inspired sticky orange tempeh
Golden, crispy tempeh nuggets in a sticky, sweet and sour Chinese takeout inspired orange sauce.
Ingredients
- 200 g Tempeh
- 1 tsp cornflour
- 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
- ½ white onion
- ½ red bell pepper
For the sauce-
- 2 tbsp agave
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tsp garlic ginger paste
- Juice and zest of 1 medium orange
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp corn flour
- 2 tbsp water
Instructions
- Tear the tempeh into even size chunks and coat with 1 tbsp cornflour and 1 tbsp dark soy sauce and stir to evenly coat the pieces.
- Fry off the tempeh until crispy. Set this aside.
- Cut the pepper and onion into even sized chunks and fry off until soft. Set aside.
- Mix all the sauce ingredients and pour into the pan. Cook this for a few minutes until its thickened.
- Now add the tempeh, onion and peppers back in and stir to coat.
- Serve and enjoy!
- Tear the tempeh into even size chunks, toss into a big mixing bowl and coat with 1 tbsp cornflour and 1 tbsp dark soy sauce and stir to evenly coat the pieces.
- Heat up some oil and fry off the tempeh until crispy and golden on all sides. You may need to do this in small batches to get an even cook. Set this aside.
- Cut the pepper and onion into even sized chunks and fry off until soft. Set aside.
- Mix all the sauce ingredients and pour into the pan. Cook this for a few minutes until its thickened.
- Now add the tempeh, onion and peppers back in to the pan with the sauce.
- Stir well and cook on low until the tempeh and vegetables are warmed through and the sauce is at your desired consistency.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Tempeh flavour- A top tip for those that are not so keen on the beany taste of tempeh is to boil the tempeh for a few minutes before flouring ang frying. This will take some of the strong and sometimes bitter flavour edge off.
Want some more tempeh inspo? Check out the recipes below!
- BBQ Tempeh Nuggets
- Instant Noodles Stir Fry with Tempeh and Vegetables
- Takeaway Style Tempeh Tikka Masala
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