Vegan Orange Chicken (Orange Chickpeas)

The best Vegan Orange Chicken made with chickpeas! Sticky, sweet, and umami with the right amount of spice, this orange chickpeas recipe is a healthy meatless copycat of your favorite Chinese takeout! This quick and easy recipe is gluten-free, allergy-free, made in one pan, and ready in 10 minutes! A delicious plant-based meal that's great for lunch, dinner, and leftovers!

Orange chicken, but make it vegan and plant-based! No meat, no mock meat, just chickpeas! It's the easiest way to make your favorite Chinese takeout dish right at home without the wait, price, or processed ingredients! Healthy vegan orange chicken made in one pan, ready in 10 minutes, and the perfect way to veganize that Panda Express orange chicken you've been craving! It has all the satisfying sticky, sweet flavors and the perfect amount of spice without any soy, refined sugars, or deep-frying!

Why You'll Love These Orange Chickpeas

No fake meat, no soy, no gluten, all plants, all the time! That mouthwatering sweet, sour, umami, and slightly spicy sticky sauce is even more delicious when paired with tender, creamy chickpeas! You don't have to worry about messy deep-frying, just a quick stir-fry all in one skillet and ready in 10 minutes! This vegan orange chicken recipe is completely:

• Gluten-Free
• Vegan & Vegetarian
• Allergy-free (Dairy-Free, Soy-Free, Egg-Free, Nut-Free, Peanut-Free, Wheat-Free, Sesame-Free, Corn-Free, Coconut-Free)
• Grain-Free
• Refined Sugar-Free
• Healthy & Budget-Friendly
• Packed with 100% Plant-Based Protein
• Quick & Easy Lunch or Dinner
• Great for Meal Prep & Leftovers

A Vegan Copycat For Panda Express Orange Chicken

In select locations for a limited time, you actually can get Beyond Meat Vegan Orange Chicken at Panda Express, but it's NOT gluten-free, soy-free, and still fried and loaded with sugar and sodium. Orange chicken is what Panda Express is known for, they sell over 100 million pounds per year! And that's just Panda Express. Orange chicken is a favorite takeout option at many local Chinese restaurants. It's clear we needed a better, healthier, just as tasty vegan copycat!

Ingredients For Vegan Orange Chicken

• Chickpeas: Canned chickpeas or freshly cooked chickpeas are the hearty plant-based protein star acting as your meatless chicken.
• Starch + Black Pepper + Oil: Starch (corn or arrowroot) and black pepper are used to give your chickpeas a simple coating that will allow the orange sauce to stick. Then everything is lightly pan-fried with a touch of oil to warm and get crisp before adding in the sauce.
• Orange Juice: Freshly squeezed orange juice is best! Fresh, naturally sweet, and perfectly citrusy. It will be providing the STAR flavor to your recipe.
• Rice Vinegar: A splash of rice vinegar adds the sour element to this classic Asian orange sauce.
• Coconut Aminos: Soy sauce without the soy (or gluten!) Coconut aminos are the salty, umami, allergen-free sauce everyone should have on hand!
• Seasonings: Additional seasonings for the vegan orange sauce include a touch of brown sugar (or sweetener) for sweetness, some chili paste for spice, freshly grated ginger, minced garlic, and some orange zest from your leftovers juicing oranges. Finally some chopped scallions for the right amount of oniony flavor.
• White Rice: What is orange chicken (meatless or not) without some delicious white rice to help soak up all the extra saucy goodness?

Ingredient And Flavor Variations

• Make It Extra Spicy: You can add more chili paste according to your taste preferences. Maybe even a drizzle of sriracha!
• Make It Extra Sweet: You can add more brown sugar or use a liquid sweetener like vegan honey or a small amount of molasses, date syrup, or maple. You can keep it added sugar-free by using Swerve.
• Add Sesame: This recipe is top 9 allergen-free. You can, however, add a teaspoon of sesame oil and/or sesame seeds to your dish if your diet allows them! Toasted sesame seeds are key to amping up the flavor!
• Keep It Oil-Free: You can pan-fry your chickpeas in just the starch and pepper to begin. As long as the chickpeas are slightly moist, the extra oil for the pan can be avoided.

How To Make Healthy Orange Sauce

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the orange juice, coconut aminos, and vinegar. (Add optional sesame oil if you are using it!)
2. Then add in the sweetener, chili paste, garlic, freshly grated ginger, and scallions.
3. Mix the sauce together and taste test before adjusting any seasonings.

How To Make Vegan Orange Chicken

1. Add your chickpeas and oil to a large wok or skillet.
2. Add the starch and black pepper to toss with the chickpeas, stirring so they are fully coated. (You can toss the chickpeas with the starch, beforehand, in a separate bowl if you don't mind the extra clean-up!)
3. Pour in the homemade orange sauce and reduce the heat slightly while the sauce thickens from the natural sugars and starch on the chickpeas.
4. Stir the orange chickpeas and remove from heat once the sauce has become sticky and thick, clinging to the chickpeas.

How To Serve Orange Chickpeas

You can simply garnish the orange chickpeas with some more sesame seeds (if using), chopped green onion, or fresh orange slices. To make them a meal, there's no wrong way to serve these saucy, tangy chickpeas! Here are some delicious ideas on how to serve and what to serve them with:

• Keep it traditional with white rice or brown rice
• Delicious and healthy gluten-free vegetable fried rice
• Cauliflower rice for a low-carb rice alternative
• Other cooked gluten-free grains like millet, quinoa, or buckwheat
• Over a gluten-free lo mein, soba, or rice noodles for a healthy noodle bowl
• Stuffed in a baked sweet potato or baking potato. Even over some mashed potatoes
• Used in delicious lettuce wraps or gluten-free tortilla wraps like a burrito
• Used in a buddha bowl full of delicious veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels, bell peppers, etc.

How To Store Leftovers

You can store leftover vegan orange chicken chickpeas in a closed container in the fridge for 5-7 days. Leftovers are 100% delicious, just like any Chinese takeout!

Can You Freeze It?

To freeze the orange chickpeas, add them to a freezer-safe bag and lay the bag flat in the freezer until solid before moving it around to organize. You can also freeze in a container. They'll be best if used within 5-6 months.

How To Reheat

You can reheat leftovers from the fridge by warming the chickpeas in a pan on the stove or quickly in the microwave. Add an extra splash of orange juice or vinegar to loosen up the sauce again. To reheat from frozen, all the chickpeas to thaw in the fridge first for best results.

More Delicious Vegan Takeout:

• Vegan Butter Chicken (Indian Butter Chickpeas)
• Vegan Sweet and Sour Chickpeas
• General Tso's Chickpeas
• Teriyaki Chickpeas
• Mongolian Chickpeas
• Quinoa Spring Rolls with Homemade Duck Sauce
• Classic Vegetable Fried Rice
• Pineapple Fried Rice
• Cold Sesame Peanut Noodles
• Easy Vegan Pad Thai

Print

I know! I'm ready to dive right into a bowl too! This recipe for orange chickpeas is beyond easy and so delicious, you'll be enjoying takeout (takeIN) every night of the week!

So tell me:

+ What Chinese takeout recipe do you wish you had veganized and allergy-free?

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