I made a dupe of a Panda Express dish for $2.53 a serving - and you only need three Aldi ingredients

THE CHICKEN is crispy, the sauce is sweet yet tangy - the only difference I can notice as I take my first bite is that it didn’t come from a paper box.

It’s only taken about 20 minutes to serve up my own version of the Panda Express orange chicken, which is less time than it would have taken to drive to the restaurant or get it delivered.

Now, I love takeout as much as the next guy, but my favorite fast food restaurants have been raising their prices in recent years.

In fact, the average American now spends 10 percent of their income on fast food, according to Eat Pallet.

This got me thinking, there’s got to be a cheaper way to enjoy these meals.

Like many customers, orange chicken is my go-to order at Panda Express, but these days it costs $11.20 for a large portion.

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Convenience is also important, so I am using ready-to-cook, frozen chicken tenders to give me that crispy chicken outer coating without any of the mess.

As soon as I see a recipe involving eggs and breadcrumbs, I immediately know I’m not doing that.

So the chicken tenders give that authentic Panda Express crunch without any fuss.

CHOOSING THE INGREDIENTS

For that sticky orange flavor, I am using orange marmalade.

And to smooth out the sauce and add some extra sweetness, BBQ sauce is on the agenda.

I’m using Sweet Baby Rays, which is actually more expensive than the Aldi brand, Burman’s.

So you could make this recipe even cheaper by using the Aldi sauce, but in my opinion, the flavor and thickness of Sweet Baby Ray’s make it worth the extra cost.

Here are the exact ingredients I bought from Aldi.

Kirkwood honey battered breast tenders $6.55 (25.5oz)
Berryhill sweet orange marmalade $2.55 (16oz)
Sweet Baby Ray's barbecue sauce, honey $3.29 (28oz)

I am using all the tenders, three-quarters of the jar of marmalade, and half the bottle of barbecue sauce.

That means my total cost for four generous servings is $10.11 - just $2.53 per serving.

On top of this, I’ll need just a dash of soy sauce, which I already have in my pantry like most people do.

So let’s get started!

COOKING IT UP

First, I cook the chicken tenders in my oven according to the packet instructions.

While they are cooking, I get out a large saucepan and put it on a medium-high heat - all easy so far.

Into the pan, I add half the jar of marmalade, a cup of barbecue sauce, and two tablespoons of soy sauce - all at the same time.

Stirring these together, I let it cook for 15 to 20 minutes.

By this time, the oven has pinged and the chicken is done.

I simply toss the tenders into the pan and cover them with the sauce.

Once the tenders are coated evenly, it’s time to remove the pan from heat and serve this up - and it smells delicious already.

I served mine with white jasmine rice because it is incredibly inexpensive, and is a healthy source of simple carbohydrates.

Because I had some cilantro lying around, I threw that on top too. Now, it looks even fresher than the Panda Express takeout!

HOW DOES IT TASTE?

I’m immediately impressed not only by how similar this dish looks to the Panda Express version, but how good it tastes.

The chicken has a crispy crunch, the sauce is thick, sweet, and tangy.

And this portion is way bigger than what you would get from any fast food restaurant.

I’m very proud to serve the leftovers to my roommate and my girlfriend the next day - they were impressed too.

So it’s hard to imagine how I will ever justify spending $11.20 for the “real” version ever again.

MORE CHEAP EATS

Luckily, this Panda Express dupe recipe isn’t the only way you can feed your family exciting meals on the cheap.

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