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Trader Joe’s Orange Chicken Air Fryer Recipe

Published: Dec 6, 2021 · Mar 26, 2023 by JenMo · This post may contain affiliate links

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With our Trader Joe’s orange chicken air fryer recipe you can have dinner on the table in just 15-minutes! For this recipe, we are using precooked frozen mandarin chicken to make a quick and easy weeknight dinner. While you can use any brand of frozen orange chicken, we do prefer the Trader Joe’s brand for this frozen orange chicken air fryer recipe.

Trader Joe's orange chicken air fryer recipe from frozen

Frozen Orange Chicken in Air Fryer

Our Trader Joe’s orange chicken air fryer recipe has been a lifesaver on more than one occasion recently as life has been hectic and dinner rarely planned.

Luckily, with a bag of precooked frozen orange chicken, and just 15-minutes, we can have dinner on the table faster than we can call for take-out.

Paired with some air fryer frozen fried rice, or even cauliflower rice, or served with egg drop soup, and your frozen orange chicken in air fryer easily becomes a quick and easy Asian-inspired dinner is ready to go.

Be sure to check out our other air fryer frozen chicken recipes including breaded chicken patties and boneless chicken wings.

Trader Joe's orange chicken air fryer pin

Trader Joe’s Mandarin Orange Chicken Ingredient Notes

To make our Trader Joe’s orange chicken air fryer recipe we need just a single ingredient – a bag of Trader Joe’s brand frozen orange chicken. However, you can use any brand of frozen mandarin orange chicken that you like with our air fryer orange chicken recipe.

trader joe's mandarin chicken air fryer recipe with the bag next to an air fryer unit
  • Frozen Orange Chicken – we used Trader Joes’s Mandarin Orange Chicken, but any brand will work!

** Please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post for the exact quantities **

Equipment

  • An Air Fryer- We have a Cosori XL basket style air fryer, a Ninja Foodi pressure cooker & air fryer combo, an Instant Pot Omni Plus oven style air fryer, an Instant Pot air fryer lid, and a small 3.2L Farberware basket style air fryer. The Cosori unit was used in this recipe. 
  • Non-stick spatula

How to Air Fry Orange Chicken (Trader Joe’s)

This Trader Joe’s Mandarin chicken air fryer dinner is a quick-cooking option that needs just 10 minutes of cook time and then it’s ready for sauce, your favorite sides, and a dinner plate.

frozen orange chicken in air fryer recipe steps

Preheat the air fryer at 400 F for 5 minutes.

Add the frozen orange chicken to the air fryer basket. If you have a large air fryer the entire bag of chicken should fit in a single layer, if you have a small one and are just serving 1-2 people, you can just cook half of the frozen chicken. Do not add the sauce packet yet, it gets added after cooking.

The precooked orange chicken will take about 10 minutes to cook and brown in an air fryer.

Halfway through the cooking time after 5 minutes, flip the chicken or shake the air fryer basket.

Microwave the sauce packets for 1-2 minutes to defrost and heat the orange sauce.

Transfer the cooked air fryer orange chicken to a medium-size bowl. Add the heated orange sauce and combine it with the chicken to coat every piece.

Serve hot and enjoy!

Substitutions

  • While we do prefer the Trader Joe’s brand of precooked frozen orange chicken, any brand should work with our recipe including Foster Farms and Panda Express.

Variations

  • Sauce-Free – If there are some in your home that are not a fan of the mandarin orange ginger sauce, serve some of your cooked chicken pieces without it.

Tips for Frozen Orange Chicken

  • The chicken turns out best if you just add enough to have it be in a single layer on the bottom of the air fryer basket and don’t overcrowd it.
  • For best results, we do recommend you shake your chicken after 10 minutes so your Trader Joe’s orange chicken air fryer recipe cooks completely and evenly.
  • All air fryer units cook a little differently. Yours could take a little less time than the recipe states or could take a little longer. Keep a close eye on the cooking time the first time you go to cook a recipe.
  • Do not add the sauce packet until after the chicken is cooked through, otherwise, the sauce will burn if you add it while the Trader Joe’s orange chicken is air frying.
air fryer frozen orange chicken recipe in a bowl with fried rice

How to reheat orange chicken

The best way to reheat orange chicken is in an air fryer:

  1. Preheat the air fryer to 400F for 5 minutes.
  2. Add parchment paper to the bottom of the air fryer to keep the sauce from making a mess.
  3. Add a little bit of water in the bottom of the air fryer basket to help create steam in the air fryer, this helps to keep the chicken from burning since it has sauce on it.
  4. Air fry the precooked orange chicken for 2-4 minutes until it’s cooked through to your liking and the chicken has an internal temperature of 165F.
  5. Alternatively, you can microwave or saute the chicken in a skillet.

Common Questions

What to serve with Trader Joe’s Mandarin orange chicken?

Pair your Trader Joe’s orange chicken air fryer recipe with air fryer, cauliflower rice, or frozen egg rolls for an Asian-inspired dinner.

Is Trader Joe’s orange chicken already cooked?

Yes, Trader Joe’s orange chicken comes pre-cooked. It is individually quickly frozen so each piece freezes completely. Before serving it, you must cook and bring the chicken up to 165 F before eating.

How do you fix Trader Joe’s orange chicken?

To cook it in an air fryer – Place your frozen chicken pieces in an air fryer basket in a single layer and put your basket into a preheated 400F air fryer unit. Air fry for 10 minutes total, shaking after 5 minutes. Warm the sauce in the microwave for 1-2 and coat the chicken after cooking.
To bake– Place your frozen chicken pieces on a baking sheet in a single layer and bake in a preheated 400F oven for 20+ minutes. Warm the sauce in the microwave for 1-2 minutes and coat the chicken after baking.

More Air Fryer Recipes

  • Air Fryer Breaded Chicken Patties
  • Air Fryer Anytizer Boneless Chicken Nuggets
  • Trader Joe’s Coconut Shrimp Air Fryer
  • Air fryer avocado fries

💌 Be sure to join our air fryer recipes email list! Every week we’ll send you easy air fryer recipes from our Whole Lotta Air Frying site + our Whole Lotta Yum site! If you enjoy our recipe, please leave us a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review and leave us a comment too!

📖 Recipe

air fryer frozen orange chicken recipe in a bowl with fried rice

Trader Joe’s Mandarin Orange Chicken (Air Fryer)

Learn to cook frozen orange chicken in an air fryer! We used Trader Joe's Mandarin orange chicken, but any brand of frozen orange chicken will work.
5 from 2 votes
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Author Jen
Prep Time 5 minutes mins
Cook Time 10 minutes mins
Total Time 15 minutes mins
Course Frozen Foods
Cuisine Asian
Servings 5 servings

Equipment

  • air fryer
  • Rubber spatula

Ingredients
  

  • 22 oz Trader Joe's Mandarin Orange Chicken frozen

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the air fryer at 400 F for 5 minutes.
  • Add the frozen orange chicken to the air fryer basket. If you have a large air fryer the entire bag of chicken should fit in a single layer, if you have a small one and are just serving 1-2 people, you can just cook half of the frozen chicken. Do not add the sauce packet yet, it gets added after cooking.
  • The precooked orange chicken will take about 10 minutes to cook and brown in an air fryer. Halfway through the cooking time after 5 minutes, flip the chicken or shake the air fryer basket.
  • Microwave the sauce packets for 1-2 minutes to defrost and heat the orange sauce.
  • Transfer the cooked air fryer orange chicken to a medium size bowl. Add the heated orange sauce and combine it with the chicken to coat every piece. Serve hot and enjoy!

Notes

  • The chicken turns out best if you just add enough to have it be in a single layer on the bottom of the air fryer basket and don’t overcrowd the basket.
  • Shake or flip the chicken halfway through cooking to help the chicken evenly brown.
  • All air fryer units cook a little differently. Yours could take a little less time than the recipe states or could take a little longer. Keep a close eye on the cooking time the first time you go to cook a recipe.
  • Any brand of frozen orange chicken will work for this recipe including Trader Joes, Foster Farms, and Panda Express.
  • Do not add the sauce packet until after the chicken is cooked through, otherwise the sauc will burn if you add it while the chicken is air frying.

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