Posted on Jul 15, 2022
How Panda Express won over customers with a made-up dish
865
11
2
6
6
0
Panda Express’ orange chicken, the quintessential American Chinese invention that helped bolster a nationwide craze for Chinese takeout, turns 35 on Friday.
The ubiquitous restaurant offering, while deceptive simple, marries a host of Chinese regional flavors with American ingredients.
It all started in Hawaii. In 1987, executive chef Andy Kao invented orange chicken on a business trip to open the state’s first Panda Express restaurant. Inspired by the citrus on the island and the locals’ love for meat dishes, Kao decided to coat an American classic, fried chicken, with a tangy, sweet and spicy sauce — a traditional flavor combination in the Chinese city of Yang Zhou.
Kao initially used bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts to make the dish but soon learned that Americans preferred boneless, skinless meat in bite-size pieces. To accommodate their milder palates, he also removed whole dried chilis to dial down the spice.
The ubiquitous restaurant offering, while deceptive simple, marries a host of Chinese regional flavors with American ingredients.
It all started in Hawaii. In 1987, executive chef Andy Kao invented orange chicken on a business trip to open the state’s first Panda Express restaurant. Inspired by the citrus on the island and the locals’ love for meat dishes, Kao decided to coat an American classic, fried chicken, with a tangy, sweet and spicy sauce — a traditional flavor combination in the Chinese city of Yang Zhou.
Kao initially used bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts to make the dish but soon learned that Americans preferred boneless, skinless meat in bite-size pieces. To accommodate their milder palates, he also removed whole dried chilis to dial down the spice.
How Panda Express won over customers with a made-up dish
Posted from nbcnews.com
China
Food/Chow
Hawaii
Culture
Edited 2 y ago
Posted 2 y ago
Responses: 2
3
3
0
@PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."Although some perceive the restaurant as “Americanized,” it was founded by Asian immigrants. Husband-and-wife team Peggy Cherng, born in Burma, and Andrew Cherng, born in China, opened Panda Express in 1983. Andrew’s first sit-down restaurant, Panda Inn, was named for President Richard Nixon’s 1972 visit to China, the panda serving as “a symbol of friendship.” His father was the chef."...
..."Although some perceive the restaurant as “Americanized,” it was founded by Asian immigrants. Husband-and-wife team Peggy Cherng, born in Burma, and Andrew Cherng, born in China, opened Panda Express in 1983. Andrew’s first sit-down restaurant, Panda Inn, was named for President Richard Nixon’s 1972 visit to China, the panda serving as “a symbol of friendship.” His father was the chef."...
(3)
(0)
2
2
0
This blends well with your previous posting about why American men die younger --- got to love America!
(2)
(0)
Read This Next
Continue with Facebook 
Continue with Google