This Heart-Healthy Slow Cooker Orange Chicken recipe is a healthier and delicious twist on the traditionally fried and high sodium version you love at your favorite Chinese restaurant. All of the flavor without all of the salt and added calories.
We’re sure your going to love this healthier version of traditional Orange Chicken, both for its flavor and simplicity. Traditional orange chicken gets a healthier twist by swapping out some of the high-sodium ingredients and dropping the added calories of the breading all together. Chicken breasts are slowly cooked in the Crock Pot all day long in a mixture of freshly squeezed orange juice, orange zest, minced garlic, red pepper flakes, and low sodium soy sauce to deliver tender and tasty chicken that’s a full meal served up with brown rice or quinoa.
- 6 frozen chicken breasts, washed thoroughly and patted dry
- 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (about 1 large orange)
- 2 tsp orange zest
- 2 tsp fresh garlic, minced
- ½ tsp dried red pepper flakes
- ½ cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tbsp corn starch (more may be needed as this is to thicken the sauce in the last 15 minutes)
- Place chicken breasts in your Crock Pot.
- Pour orange juice and soy sauce over the chicken.
- Sprinkle garlic, orange zest, and red pepper flakes on top.
- Cover and simmer on low for 6 hours.
- About 15 minutes before you are ready to serve, remove chicken from the slow cooker and pour the juice into a sauce pan.
- Mix the corn starch with just enough water to make a thick paste and stir it into the orange sauce.
- Heat over medium for about 10 minutes, stirring often, until sauce thickens to a glaze.
- Serve chicken over brown rice or quinoa and cover with glaze for added flavor.
We hope you love this Heart-Healthy Slow Cooker Orange Chicken recipe as much as we do. If you love this recipe, be sure to visit our Crock Pot section for more easy weeknight meal ideas. For daily recipe inspiration, like us on Facebook, follow us on Pinterest, and stop by our Google+ Community to see all of the amazing recipes our community members are sharing. Enjoy!
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