Skip the take out – this Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe is so good that you’ll put it on the permanent rotation. Chicken is coated in a sweet and sticky sauce and baked to perfection.
Years ago, I worked in an office where they would bring in lunch every day. I mostly skipped that lunch and opted to head home for my lunch hour instead, but every once in awhile, I’d stick around and have some of the lunch that was provided that day.
I remember one day, (I was pregnant with my first child, so let’s blame this on pregnancy haha), the lunch was from a local Chinese restaurant. And it smelled so good. So I decided to have lunch at work that day. I chose out an egg roll and some sweet and sour chicken, then went to my desk to eat – only to be completely disappointed. It was not good at all, and I don’t think I even ended up eating it.
That is what led me to this recipe so many years ago. It has now been here on Taste and Tell for over 10 years and remains a favorite for a good reason – it’s so stinking good. It’s one of those rare meals that everyone in my family likes. And yes – it’s so much better than that takeout sweet and sour chicken! I think I’ll forget the take-out Chinese from now on and make this Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe!
How to Make Sweet and Sour Chicken
This recipe is a little different, but trust me here!
- Start by cutting the chicken into bite sized pieces and seasoning them with salt and pepper.
- Place the cornstarch in one shallow bowl, and the eggs in another shallow bowl. Beat the eggs lightly.
- Take each piece of chicken and dredge it in the cornstarch. Then dip it in the egg. Transfer that to a skillet with oil that has been heated over medium-high heat. And yes – you dip in the cornstarch then the egg – this is a little different than a lot of other recipes.
- Cook the chicken in batches, just until it is browned. The chicken will bake in the oven, so this is just to brown and crisp up the chicken, not to cook it through. Transfer the chicken to a baking dish.
- In a bowl, combine your sauce ingredients – sugar, ketchup, vinegar, soy sauce and garlic powder. Pour this mixture over the chicken in the baking dish.
- Bake the chicken at 325ºF for an hour, stirring it every 15 minutes.
- Serve the sweet and sour chicken over rice and be prepared to never want to get it for take out again!
More Chinese Recipes
Daddy Wu’s Chinese Chicken
Pressure Cooker Cashew Chicken
Kung Pao Chicken Recipe
Easy Lo Mein Recipe
Easy Egg Roll Recipe
Orange Chicken
General Tso’s Chicken
Tools Used to Make this Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe
- My favorite skillet, especially for this recipe, is my cast iron skillet.
- I like to use tongs to dredge the chicken into the cornstarch, eggs and oil.
- I love my rice cooker and rarely cook rice any other way.
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Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
- salt and pepper
- 1 cup cornstarch
- 3 eggs ,lightly beaten
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup sugar
- 6 tablespoon ketchup
- 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
Instructions
- Cut the chicken into bite-sized chunks. Season with salt and pepper.
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF.
- Put the cornstarch in a shallow bowl. Put the eggs in a separate bowl. Place the oil in a large skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Working in batches, dredge the chicken in the cornstarch, then dip in the egg. Add to the hot oil and brown on all sides. You do not need to cook the chicken through, just brown the outside to get a crispy exterior. Transfer the chicken to a 9×13-inch baking dish and continue with the remaining chicken.
- In a bowl, combine the sugar, ketchup, cider vinegar, soy sauce and garlic powder. Pour the sauce over the top of the chicken.
- Bake the chicken for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Serve over prepared rice.
Ingrid says
This recipe is so good! I will definitely keep this!!
Linda G says
This is such a great recipe I make it when I have people over
Ginger Hill says
Delicious! I reduced the sugar and vinegar by half, and reduced cooking time to 45 minutes. Was still delicious. Thank you for sharing it.
Karyn says
This recipe was absolutely delicious. There was enough for the whole family plus leftovers. We will definitely be making this again.
Tim says
This was better than any restuarant sweet n sour chicken iv ever had. IT WAS DELICIOUS!!!!!
Nancy S. says
Not long ago we got takeout sweet and sour chicken from our local Chinese restaurant, and it was a disgusting, mushy mess, so I decided to make this last night. I added about 1 T of sesame seed oil to the oil I had to enhance the flavor. I also added some fresh pineapple to the sauce. The most tedious thing about making this is browning the chicken in batches. I used my wok but I should have used the large iron skillet I have. Anyway, it turned out very tasty. Next time I will thicken the sauce on the stovetop before dumping it on the chicken, and I will probably double the recipe for the sauce because I didn’t have much. I used a package of 3 boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces. Thanks for sharing your recipe. I will make it again. I was concerned it wouldn’t be crispy after pouring all the sauce on it, but it held up.
Sandra McIntyre says
So quick and easy and with fried rice a great Saturday night Fakeaway
Olga Martinez says
I love sweet &sawer chicken delicious
Cecilmartin850@gmail.com says
GREAT FLAVOR:WILL COPY AND USE OFTEN::::THANKS
Anita says
Making it tonight, I’m adding pineapple and peppers before it goes into the oven. Hope it’s good!
Maggie DeLone says
This was amazing. My very picky husband said it tasted like take out. Do you have a sesame chicken version? Baked in the same way but with a sesame chicken sauce instead?
Debbir says
I Make this at least once a month we love it !!!
Liz says
Love it!! Just needs another batch of the sauce added to it if u use the full two and a half pounds chicken. My husband even liked it and that’s saying ALOT!! Lol
Prisca Jones says
This recipe is just like the one a popular restaurant makes here on Aruba, LOVED it!! My son actually told me thanks for leaving some for him. A sure hit with my family too
Lea says
I tweaked this recipe a little bit by lowering the sugar and vinegar and adding some carrots and sweet peppers, but this was really good!
Patty says
I made this last night & what a treat!! Delicious!! I tweaked it a little by using sesame oil with a little shaved ginger root to brown the chicken. When it came out of the oven I sprinkled sesame seeds on top.
This recipe by will be a regular!
Thanks !!