Sweet and Sour Chicken. Crispy juicy chicken coated in a sweet, tangy, sticky sauce. A popular Chinese dish ready in 30 minutes. Great as a main dish.
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What is Sweet and Sour Chicken made of?
Sweet and Sour Chicken stir fry is a common Chinese takeout dish. Usually it is tender chicken coated in a batter then deep-fried and covered in a sweet, tangy sauce with pineapple chunks and bell peppers. This dish is found at many Chinese restaurants and it's iconic to Chinese cuisine. Many Chinese households also have their own way of cooking this dish.
My version is shallow fried in a small amount of oil, compared to deep frying. Also, there's no heavy batter - just cornstarch to make the chicken crispy. The sauce is also simple to make. I love to enjoy this as a main course with steamed white rice or brown rice and vegetables.
Ingredients
Please scroll down to the below recipe card for full measurements.
- Boneless skinless chicken thighs: or substitute with boneless skinless chicken breasts. If you use breast, please reduce the cooking time to 3-5 minutes until juices run clear or until an internal temperature of 165F.
- Red Bell Peppers: or substitute with any color
- Pineapple (optional): You may use canned or fresh pineapple.
- Onion
- Cornstarch or potato starch
- Neutral oil: such as avocado oil, peanut oil, grapeseed oil, sunflower oil, vegetable oil, or canola oil. Avoid coconut oil, olive oil or sesame oil as they are all too overpowering in scent and do not contain a high smoke point.
- Salt
- Garlic powder
Sweet and sour chicken sauce:
- Ketchup
- Brown sugar: or substitute with white sugar or cane sugar
- Regular soy sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce. If you’re gluten-free, substitute with tamari sauce, coconut aminos or a gluten-free soy sauce of your choice.
- White vinegar: or substitute with rice vinegar
- Cold Water
- Cornstarch or potato starch
Optional garnish:
- toasted sesame seeds
- green onion
How to make Sweet and Sour Chicken
Prepare Sauce
In a small bowl combine sauce ingredients. Note: if you want extra sauce, I suggest doubling the Sauce ingredients. Set aside.
Dice & Season Chicken
Cut chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces, about 1.5 x 1.5-inch pieces. Transfer into a large bowl. Set aside.
Season the amount of chicken with salt and garlic powder and mix well.
Coat Chicken
Then add cornstarch and mix until each piece is coated in starch. If you choose to use an air fryer to fry your chicken, please see the FAQ section below and skip steps 5-7.
Fry Chicken
In a large skillet on medium heat, add oil. Once oil is hot enough (test with wooden chopstick and look for bubbles), add coated chicken. Fry on each side for 4-5 minutes or until golden brown and crispy on both sides.
Remove chicken from pan with a slotted spoon and place on a wire rack or plate lined with paper towels. Cooked chicken should have an internal temperature of 165 F or until juices run clear. If the chicken isn't crispy, increase to medium-high heat.
Discard excess oil from pan, reserving 1 teaspoon of the oil in the pan.
Cook Veggies & Pineapple
Into the same pan on medium heat, fry onions, red bell pepper and pineapples for 30 – 45 seconds.
Add Sauce
Pour in sauce. Let it simmer to thicken and reduce, a couple minutes.
Toss in Fried Chicken
Once thick, add back in fried chicken and mix to coat evenly. Remove off heat.
Optional: Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds. Enjoy!
Storage & Reheating
Sweet and sour chicken will last up to 4 days in an airtight container in the fridge. Reheat in the microwave for 2-3 minutes or reheat in pan on medium heat on the stovetop until hot.
Expert Tips
- Dice chicken into equal size pieces. This will allow for an even cooking time. I usually cut each thigh if they’re the same size into 6-8 pieces. If it’s a smaller thigh, about 4 bite size pieces.
- Do not constantly move chicken as your fry! This prevents your chicken from becoming crispy as the exterior doesn't get enough time to fry. Instead, allow the chicken and fry in the pan for a 4-5 minutes per side, in a non-stick pan or 3-4 minutes per side, in a carbon steel wok.
FAQ
Can I cook Sweet and Sour Chicken in the air fryer?
Yes, follow my instructions below in the recipe card.
Other Chinese Recipes you may like!
- Sweet & Sour Battered Mushrooms
- Orange Chicken
- General Tso Chicken
- Mongolian Chicken
- Lemon Chicken
- Ginger Chicken
📖 Recipe
Quick & Easy Sweet and Sour Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 red bell pepper diced (or sub with green, orange or yellow bell peppers)
- ½ cup pineapple diced
- ½ yellow onion sliced
- ¼ cup cornstarch or sub with potato starch
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil or any neutral oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder or 1 teaspoon minced garlic
Sauce:
- ⅓ cup ketchup
- ½ cup brown sugar or white sugar
- ¼ cup white vinegar or rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoon water cold
- 1 tablespoon regular soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch or sub with potato starch
Optional garnish:
- ½ teaspoon sesame seeds toasted
- 1 stalk green onion finely chopped
Instructions
- Cut chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces, about 1.5 x 1.5-inch pieces. Transfer into a large bowl. Season chicken with salt and garlic powder and mix well. Set aside.
- In a small bowl combine sauce ingredients. Set aside.
- Then add cornstarch to the chicken and toss in the starch until each piece is evenly coated.
- Heat oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Once oil is hot enough (test with wooden chopstick and look for bubbles), add coated chicken.
- Fry on each side for 4-5 minutes or until golden brown on both sides. Remove chicken from pan with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel lined plate or a cooling rack. Cooked chicken should have an internal temperature of 165 F or until juices run clear.
- Discard excess oil from pan, reserving 1 teaspoon of the oil.
- Into the same pan on medium heat, fry onions, red bell pepper and pineapples for 30 – 45 seconds.
- Pour in sauce and let it simmer to thicken and reduce, a couple minutes.
- Once thick, add back in fried chicken and mix to coat evenly. Remove off heat.
- Optional: Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds. Enjoy!
Notes
Air Frying Instructions for Chicken:
1. Lightly spray air fryer basket with oil. 2. Lay coated chicken into air fryer basket in a single layer giving each piece enough space. You may need to air fry in batches if needed. Lightly spray coated chicken with oil. 3. Air fry at 400 degrees F for 12-14 minutes until golden crispy brown. The amount of time depends on your air fryer. I have a Philips Air Fryer and I air fried mine at 400 degrees at 14 minutes for a crispy texture. If you’re using a different machine, check your chicken at 12 minutes and if it needs more crispiness, air fry for another couple minutes until you reach your desired texture. 4. Resume steps 8 onwards.Suggested Equipment & Products
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Michelle | Sift & Simmer
Ahh this is such a nostalgic dish! My mom would make it on occasion since she doesn't like to deep fry too much. I love how your version is a shallow-fry -- keeps it a bit healthier! 🙂 Have a fantastic weekend, Christie!
Katerina | Once a Foodie
Mmmm, this looks absolutely delightful, Christie! I love that your version of sweet and sour chicken is not deep fried - that's so much better than the restaurant version. Yum!
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
I love what you used instead of pineapple juice to make the sauce... and those sesame seeds sprinkled on top make the chicken so tantalizing! 💕
Rosemary
OKAY I had no idea that ketchup went into sweet and sour chicken!! How cool hehe you really do learn something every day! BTW-- this looks beautiful!
Liz
We made this tonight & it was better than take out!! I shallow fried the chicken & just added some pineapple! Delicious Thanks Christie, we’ll be making it again!
Cambrea gordon
This sweet and sour chicken is honestly AMAZING. We tried the shallow pan fry and I actually love it more than the typical deep fry! The flavor of the sauce is delicious and it was even better the next day. My favorite part was that I didn't need to go to the store to buy canned pineapple, I had everything on hand to make it! Highly recommend this recipe!!
christieathome
Thank you so much for making my recipe Cam! I am so glad you enjoyed it and you liked the shallow frying technique! Happy to hear that the flavour was stronger the next day 🙂 That's always a good thing.
Gigi HD
This recipe was super easy to follow and so delish!! My 3yo girl is a huge fan of this dish and I’m now able to save $15/week on take out 🙂 I made two batches, one original for my girl and one spicy for myself by adding siracha to sauce mix. It was heavenly 🙂 Thanks Christie for this recipe!
Agustina
My friend! I’ve made the recipe and it came out spectacular! It was my first Asian food meal and I really enjoyed. The flavours, the ingredients and texture! Everything perfect! Thanks for sharing!
christieathome
Thank you so much for making my recipe!! I am really glad to read that you enjoyed it my friend! Happy it worked out and that I could introduce you to more Asian flavours 🙂
Hasin
Christie,
I just came to fetch this recipe as my girls like the sweet and sour chicken. Loved the fact it's not deeply fried.
Stacey
This was better than take out! I like how this recipe doesn’t call for deep frying and I was still able to get the chicken crispy. YUM!
christieathome
Amazing! Thanks for making my recipe! Glad you enjoyed it! ☺️
Jeffrey Beaumont
Fantastic recipe, this is now one of my very favorite Chinese recipes. I used green onions for the garnish, and Avacado oil to fry the chicke. Also sprinkled some sesame seeds to serve. Served with plain old whit rice and the meal was wonderful, thank you, Jeff
christieathome
Thanks so much for making my recipe, Jeff! So glad it has become one of your favorite Chinese recipes. This makes me very happy to read. Have a lovely day!
Quinn
made this recipe tonight as it wasnt a deep fried version, turned out great, and the sauce wasnt overly sweet like takeout
christieathome
Thanks for making my recipe, Quinn 🙂 Happy that I could share a "healthier" version of this classic dish and glad it turned out great!
Asia Scott
Made this last night and made no changes at except Red Pepper Flakes. We like Spicy. It was so good now going through you recipes to see what I am cooking tonight.
christieathome
Thank you so much for making my recipe! I am so happy that you enjoyed it, Asia! Yes, feel free to add some red pepper flakes to take it up a notch 🙂 I hope you enjoy my other recipes!
Shabnam
It was great had people over they all loved it!
christieathome
Awesome! Thanks for making my recipe, Shabnam!