Orange Chicken Stir Fry With Olive Oil

An orange chicken stir fry is a light, healthy dish made quickly with high heat. Olive oil is a healthy monounsaturated fat, but not all olive oils are the same. Depending on the heat you use to cook your chicken, vegetables and fruit, extra virgin may not be your best choice, due to its lower smoke point.

Olive Oil

Olive oils come in different grades, depending on how much they are refined. Cooks often tout the benefits of extra virgin oil because of its low acidity and more noticeable flavor. Because it's more refined, extra virgin olive oil has a lower smoke point, or temperature at which it begins smoking. If you are cooking a stir fry for the first time and do not know how high your cooking temperature will be, try an olive oil other than extra virgin to make sure burnt oil doesn't spoil your dish. This will also reduce the olive flavor you may not want in this dish.

Cookware

As you become more adept at making a stir fry quickly, you can experiment with extra virgin olive oil if you want that option. This will be an even better option depending on the type of cookware you are using. If you use a stainless steel wok or a non-stick pan that requires very little cooking oil, you will eliminate two of the downsides of making a stir fry with extra virgin oil: You won't have as much of the oil flavoring your food, and you won't have as much oil in the pan heating and smoking.

The Chicken

Prepare your chicken for quick cooking at high heat and in less oil. Cut the pieces into small, 1-inch cubes while the poultry is still cold. This will make cutting easier. Marinate the chicken by covering it in orange juice and refrigerating it for 30 minutes or more. The acids in the juice will tenderize the chicken. When you are ready to cook, let the chicken come to room temperature so it will cook evenly. Sprinkle the chicken pieces lightly with salt just before you put them into your pan.

The Sauce

There are many ways to make an orange chicken sauce. You can use orange juice with an Asian sauce such as soy or teriyaki. You can add heat to the juice with spices. You can thicken the sauce with cornstarch, a hallmark of Asian gravies. Some cooks like to make stir fries by frying the vegetables first, then removing them from the pan while the protein cooks with the sauce. Others prefer to cook the vegetables in reserved sauce to flavor the vegetables.

Cooking

Turn your wok, pan or skillet on high and let it heat evenly. Add 1 to 2 tbsp. of olive oil, depending on what type of cookware you have. Remove the chicken pieces from the orange liquid and begin frying. Let the chicken sit for at least one minute before stirring, then stir with a spatula, flipping from underneath. Do not press down on the chicken or you will dry it out. Remove the chicken after approximately five minutes, or when the outside begins to brown.

Pour the orange juice in which the chicken pieces were marinating into the pan to deglaze it. Let the juice boil while you gently scrape any bits of chicken off the bottom of the pan. After one minute, add the vegetables to the pan and stir fry for two to three minutes, depending on how you like your vegetables cooked, crisp-tender or soft. Add the chicken back to the pan to combine the ingredients and reheat, and then remove from heat and serve.