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.
LOOKING FOR MORE FREE RECIPES?
Subscribe to my free recipe newsletter to get new family friendly recipes in your inbox each week! Find me sharing more family-friendly inspiration on Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram.
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.
Ken T says
I was looking for a quick recipe to go with white rice. This was excellent. I added a bit of sautéed onion and pepper ( I happened to have an orange pepper), and served some steamed broccoli on the side.
Laura D says
LOVED IT!!
This is a little bit of work, but well worth it!
I didn’t have apple cider vinegar, so I used regular, and I also didn’t have vegetable oil, so I used EVOO, and I only had one package of chicken breasts – about a pound and a half. This turned out better than I could have imagined! Tasted WAY better than the restaurant version!
For the last 15 minutes, I turned the oven up to 425 since I had egg rolls to cook as well, and it still turned out awesome – not dry at all! Would definitely recommend!
Elizabeth says
We love this recipe and have been making it for a while so i needed to finally leave a review..I always double this because we can never get enough of this!
Thank you so much for the awesome recipe
Anna Koziol says
Just tried this recipe out and it was delicous, at first I was a bit worried that it might taste too vinegary since the smell of the vinegar is prominent but fortunately all the other ingredients balanced it out
Sedric Battle says
I followed your instructions to the letter and my meal turned out PERFECTLY!!!! Thank you soooooo much! It taste Great! My family loved it!……
Diane M France says
This was a home run!!!! My husband said this was better than the Asian place in town. I only had one complaint my back was hurting by the time I got done. The recipe makes a ton I didn’t use the whole 2lbs, I only used about 1lb and we still have enough for an other meal.
It was worth standing for, I will make this again.
Teresa Bartos says
Hi Deborah-was looking for something different for dinner-said to my husband how about sweet & sour chicken? Chose your recipe and sooo glad i did!! It was delicious And i know i will hear the microwave tonight as my husband has more sweet & sour chicken for a late night snack!! This is an awesome recipe and will be a regular at our house- will have to surprise my grandkids-can hardly wait!!!!
Rose Ann Smith says
I added sliced green peppers and onions before baking. We thought it delicious.
Deborah says
I’m so glad you liked it!
Thahab says
Hello this looks amazing, can’t wait to try it , just was wandering, after the whole frying process then chicken going in oven still be soggy? Or still crunchy ?thank you!
Robin says
Omg!! So good!!!
My mom looked for the take out containers.
Deborah says
Haha – I love that!!
Ann says
Hi, I’ve been trying to find this recipe! It’s my favorite sweet and sour chicken recipe ever. I’m going through a divorce and my recipes are all in storage, so I’m so very thankful to have found it again. Thanks so much and have a blessed day, Ann
Deborah says
Yay! I’m so glad that you have found it again!
Teresa Cole says
This is the ‘BEST’ Sweet and Sour Chicken! I will be making this again! I also sprinkled some crushed red pepper flakes after I put the chicken on my rice. DELISH!
Joyce says
I did not follow cornstarch egg. I did egg cornstarch and it seemed to brown more nicely. You could also forgo the egg and just wet the chicken with water. I found this recipe to be delicious but I made some extra sauce using regular vinegar, pineapple juice and I put in ginger. I also wanted more sauce so I but the extra in and covered it for the first half hour. It came out wonderful. I find recipes using all these pots and pans and frying tedious and stressful. I am going to try to find ways to simplify.
Lyn says
Awesome! This was so easy and sooo good! Thank you!1
Deborah says
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Patty says
Hello. Do u have to use Apple cider vinegar?
Deborah says
Feel free to experiment! I’ve only made it with apple cider vinegar, but I’m guessing it would be fine with regular white vinegar.
Martina says
I just did the recipe and instead on apple cider vinegar, I just brown vinegar. It tasted delicious.
Deborah says
I’m so glad it worked with another vinegar – thanks for letting me know!!
Jeanette O says
Are you sure the recipe is correct? Mine turned out really bad. The only taste was of the apple cider vinegar. It was really bad and ended up in the garbage.
Deborah says
I’m so sorry you didn’t love it! The recipe is correct, but I know everyone has different tastes. 🙂