Is The Meat From Panda Express Cooked From Fresh Or Frozen?

Panda Express is an itch that rarely strikes, but when it does, only Panda Express can scratch it. It's not really like any standard Chinese food place. It's so Americanized and served so quickly, it's arguably its own category of food. Like it or not, orange chicken is American food, not Chinese food. After all, Panda Express invented it! 

Put another way: Panda Express is to Chinese food what Taco Bell is to Mexican food. So, you might wonder, given that the food is prepared pretty much instantaneously when you order, if the meal is cooked from fresh or frozen meat. Well, the answer depends on the item.

We reached out to Panda Express, and the company got back to us. "Our marinated protein options are delivered frozen," a representative from the company explained, "which helps us maintain a high standard of food safety and freshness." The company continued by underscoring that it cooks "... in smaller batches throughout the day to maintain the freshness, flavor, and quality our guests expect." Touché, Panda Express! The only issue is that it's very hard to find which meats are marinated and which aren't. It might be the case that the company is similar to other restaurant chains that only use frozen meat. 

I'm not here to sell you on the benefits of Panda Express. The chain isn't exactly known for its health food offerings, and 11 items on the Panda Express menu are pretty unhealthy. So it's unlikely any revelation about its freshness or frozenness will deter or attract patrons — nor will it attract anyone in Vermont, where Panda Express doesn't exist. But here's the thing about Panda Express: As a treat or the occasional "Help, I'm trapped in a suburban mall" lunch, it's arguably fantastic. Why?

For starters, Panda Express' orange chicken is basically the standard orange chicken we all know and love. It's salty, sweet, tangy, fatty, crunchy, and just a little spicy. The sauce is that perfect bit of sticky and viscous, without being goopy and cloying. Throw that over some of the restaurant's oily chow mein, which has a ton of crunch from the cabbage, and honestly, I can't think of anything that exemplifies a guilty pleasure more. Fresh or frozen? To me, it doesn't matter. All I'm looking for is that salty-sweet bite.