Orange Chicken

• 1 green pepper
• 1 small onion (or half a large one)
• 2 large chicken breasts
• 2 tbsp. orange sauce (from above)
• 1/4 cup orange sauce, warmed (you probably made some the night before and refrigerated it - 1 min. in the microwave will do it)
• garlic powder, ginger

Cut (thawed) chicken breasts into thin 2-inch strips. Marinate strips in 2 tbsp. orange sauce for 15-30 mins. Cut peppers and onions into 1x1-inch chunks while you're waiting. You'll use two skillets: one with a lid for the onions and peppers, and one large one for the chicken strips. (No, it doesn't do you any good to use a wok unless you have a fire to cook over. A skillet is actually better. I learned that from America's Test Kitchen on PBS.) Do the following simultaneously:

• Cook onions and peppers with a spot of vegetable oil in the lidded skillet over medium heat, covered, stirring occasionally until browned but still crunchy. They'll cook faster than the chicken, so turn off the heat and cover them until you need them.
• Grill the chicken strips in the large skillet over medium-high heat. The best way is to place them not touching and boil off the marinade - it'll finish about the time the underside of the strips are nice and brown. Sprinkle garlic and ginger to taste. Continue to grill, stirring, until no pink is visible. (If you stop now, they'll be coated with orange sauce, cooked through and very tender and moist. If you don't stop now, they'll end up dry and hard. Timing is critical!)

Combine chicken strips, onion and pepper chunks in a separate bowl with the 1/4 cup orange sauce. Stir until coated, serve with rice. Serves 3.

This also works very well with Teriyaki sauce - just reduce the 1/4 cup sauce to 3 tbps.

Orange Sauce

• 1 12oz can pulp-free orange juice concentrate
• 4 tsp. soy sauce
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 3 tbsp. corn starch
• 2 cups warm water

Combine orange juice concentrate, soy sauce, and brown sugar in a sauce pan, heat until warm. Add mixture of water and corn starch. Bring almost to a boil, stirring constantly until thickened. Remove from heat immediately.

It's great for marinating and basting, but you may find it a tad strong, say, for using in an orange chicken recipe or for dipping. (I don't, but you might.) If you need to weaken the flavor, heat with some multiple of 1 cup water + 1 tbsp corn starch mixed, and sweeten with brown sugar to taste.