Crockpot Orange Chicken

My eyes are immediately drawn to recipes with the word "crockpot" in the title.  It just speaks to me!  When I found this one on Pinterest, I knew I would have to try it, so last night when Chris was out with his brothers was the perfect opportunity. 

Crockpot Orange Chicken
Adapted from  Six Sisters Stuff

3-4 chicken breasts (I used 2 large ones)
flour
oil
4 oz orange juice concentrate
1/2 T salt
1 t balsamic vinegar
3 T ketchup
3 T brown sugar
red pepper flakes (a dash or so to suit your taste)
1/2 t ginger
1/2 t garlic powder

Cut the chicken into bite size chunks and coat with about 1/3 cup of flour.  Heat a bit of olive oil in a pan and brown chicken on all sides.  When the chicken is browned, toss it in the crockpot.  The chicken does not have to be cooked through.

In a bowl, whisk together orange juice, salt, balsamic vinegar, ketchup, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, ginger, and garlic powder.  Pour over chicken and stir to coat chicken pieces.

I cooked mine on high for just over 2 hours, but you could also cook on low 5-6 hours. 

The Verdict:  Pretty good, but will tweak a bit next time I make it.  I will use white sugar instead of brown and put a bit more ginger and garlic in.  If you make this, consult the comments on the Six Sisters blog for some hints on how to make the recipe better. 

I also made some stir-fried veggies to go along with it.  I consulted a few recipes online and this is what I came up with:


Stir-fried Veggies

2 carrots, julienned
small bunch of broccoli, chopped
1/4 c of chopped red onion
1 garlic clove, chopped
sesame oil
red pepper flakes
soy sauce

Heat a tablespoon or so of sesame oil in a frying pan (or wok I suppose) over medium heat.  Put your garlic and red pepper flakes in and cook for 1-2 minutes and remove.  Toss in veggies and a splash of soy sauce and cook for 4-5 minutes, adding in the garlic and red pepper flakes after a couple of minutes.  Serve immediately.

The Verdict:  These were pretty good!  I usually eat my veggies kind of mushy, but I liked these crisp and they went well with the orange chicken.  Next time I'll try with some red pepper and snow peas.