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.
Alan Willoughby says
I made this for my wife’s birthday dinner and she was ecstatic. I did lightly stir fry some yellow pepper, onion and carrot and added them while baking. It’s great to have something we can throw in the oven while walking the dog and come home to a hot, delicious meal!
Jo-Ann Villafuerte says
I was looking for a chicken recipe and came across this recipe and it looked so good good so I decided to try it. My family loved it, they commented, it’s even better than the Chinese restaurants. This recipe did not disappoint! Needless to say, I will be making this at home more when I’m craving this dish instead of ordering out.
mollie duvall says
I discovered this recipe about a year ago and have made it 5 or 6 times. It is soooo good and easy! My changes: I cut the chicken a little larger than bite size. This reduces the possibility of the chicken drying out during the oven time. I am cooking for two so, I cut the amount of chicken in half but, keep the sauce amounts the same because we love the sauce over rice! I also garnish with uncooked green onions. Restaurant quality dish, to quote my grateful husband.
Sha'Maya says
I love the recipe the food look so good and I really want to try it SO bad.
ken Barbour Jr. says
it was good , thankyou
Saidbh O'Donnell says
This recipe was so much more than expected! I had been sick with norovirus and I was just coming back around to eating and fancied something with rice (I know a bit extreme from going from eating nothing lol) but this was just divine and I’m so glad I made it! Everyone in the house gobbled it up too!
Liberty G. says
I made a double batch of this recipe for my guys at work, and they demolished it! It turned out amazing and juicy, way better than the deep fried from take out. Trying it out with pork loin cut into thin bite size pieces, currently in the oven now. I’ll update how it turns out! This recipe is definitely a keeper!
David white says
I think this recipe is great I have just made this and it tasted yummy went back for seconds I love sweet and sour this will be my go to recipe will defo make again thank you for this great recipe
Stephanie Novello says
So easy and yummy! Even good as a left over, I make it often
MarySC says
I can’t rate this because I used a different sauce. I was intrigued by the “cornstarch then egg”. I’ve been using cornstarch only for a long time. So I tried 3 options- egg then cornstarch, only cornstarch, and cornstarch then egg.. The first was heavier. There was virtually no difference between the last two in texture or taste. However using the egg last was way more of a mess both transferring to the fryer and in the fryer. I’ll stick with cornstarch only,
Sonia says
Great dish I did add less vinegar it was way to much for me….I made it for my granddaughter and she really loved…..Thank you for sharing the recipe.
J Ward says
This recipe was SO delicious! Easy ingredients that you would typically have sitting in the pantry.. A little time consuming, but so worth the time! This will certainly become one that is cooked often in my family! Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
Ellen Merick says
This was really good. My two granddaughters loved it too, and they can be picky eaters.
Next time, I’ll dip in egg first, since that is the usual procedure for egg dipping.
Racquel says
Deborah, I tried this recipe and it rocked! My family enjoyed every bit. It was so much better than going to a Chinese restaurant.
Carol says
This sweet and sour chicken recipe is incredible. Better than any takeaway I’ve ever had.
Cathy says
This recipe is from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
I’ve been using it for 15 years.
Very good but she deserves the attribution.