Easy Sweet and Sour Chicken
Sweet and Sour Chicken is an easy dinner that can be on the table in about 30 minutes. The homemade sauce is sweet and tangy with the perfect amount of heat. My family thinks this quick dinner recipe is better than take out!
This easy homemade Sweet and Sour Chicken recipe is made with ingredients you probably already keep stocked in your refrigerator and pantry.
It’s made with seasoned chicken breast coated in cornstarch and fried in a skillet. The sauce comes together quickly and is made with pineapple juice, ketchup, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, soy sauce, minced garlic, and some red pepper flakes.
If you are looking for other similar recipes, this Sticky Honey Garlic Chicken was a huge hit with my family.
One of my other favorite recipes to make with chicken is my Easy Chicken Fried Rice I like making outside on my griddle. Top it with any of your favorite sauces and the leftovers always reheat well for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
- Chicken breast
- Corn starch
- Salt and pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes
- Peanut oil or any oil you like frying in
- Pineapple juice
- Ketchup
- Apple cider vinegar
- Brown sugar
- Soy sauce
- Minced garlic
- Cornstarch slurry
- Green onions
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Make Sweet and Sour Chicken
The great thing about this recipe is that it doesn’t require a lot of prep work making it perfect for a weeknight dinner!
Start by cutting 1 lb of chicken breasts into small cubes.
Use a paper towel to pat dry the chicken. This will help be sure the cornstarch and seasonings stick to the chicken.
Add the cut up chicken to a large bowl. Add 1/2 cup corn starch and season the chicken with salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder. Toss the chicken until well coated in the cornstarch and seasonings.
Next, add 3-4 tablespoons of peanut oil to a pan on medium-high heat.
Once the oil is hot add the chicken evenly to the bottom of the pan and allow it to cook for 3-4 minutes before stirring and cooking until crispy and golden on all sides.
Remove the chicken from the pan when fully cooked and set aside.
Next, use the same pan to make the delicious sweet and sour sauce. This sauce is sweet and tangy with a tiny bit of heat from the red pepper flakes.
To make the sauce lower the heat in that same pan and add 1/2 cup pineapple juice, 1/4 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1 tbsp (less sodium) soy sauce, 1 tbsp minced garlic, and 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes.
I think the sauce has the perfect amount of heat, but if you don’t want it spicy start with a 1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes or omit them completely.
Allow that to simmer for 2 minutes before stirring in a cornstarch slurry (1 tbsp cornstarch + 2 tbsp water).
Once the sauce has thickened add your chicken back to the pan, toss to coat, and serve!
Be sure not to let the chicken sit in the sauce for too long before serving as it will not stay as crispy.
Serve Easy Sweet and Sour Chicken
Once the chicken is coated in the sweet and sour sauce, it’s time to eat!
Top the whole pan with chopped green onions. I served this with some plain jasmine rice, roasted broccoli, peppers, and some frozen egg rolls I popped in the air fryer.
I think you will love this recipe because it’s an easy one pan dinner and can be on the table in about 30 minutes.
My family likes this one more than grabbing take out and it keeps my kids coming back for seconds.
Tips and Frequently Asked Questions
- I like to use chicken breast for this recipe, but if your family prefers thighs, boneless thighs would work well too!
- Make sure to pat your chicken dry with a paper towel to ensure even coating before tossing in seasoning and cornstarch.
- I like to use peanut oil for this recipe, but you can use whatever frying oil you have on hand.
- If you really want to speed up this recipe you can cube up your chicken ahead of time and prep all the sauce ingredients in a bowl to add to the pan all at once.
- I like to top mine with fresh chopped green onions, but those are optional if you don’t have any on hand.
- I like to use apple cider vinegar for this recipe, but you can use white vinegar if that’s all you have on hand. I’d just start with 3/4 tsp since it has a stronger flavor.
Similar Recipes
- Sticky Honey Garlic Chicken
- Easy Chicken Fried Rice
- Sesame Chicken Fried Rice
- Orange Chicken and Fried Rice
- Orange Chicken Sheet Pan Meal
- Kielbasa Sheet Pan Meal
- Sweet and Sour Sheet Pan Meal
- Teriyaki Chicken Sheet Pan Meal
If you try this recipe I hope you love it. If you like the Sweet and Sour Chicken recipe please leave me a comment or pin this recipe to your Pinterest account to save it for later!
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breast
- 1/2 cup corn starch
- 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper
- 1 tsp each garlic powder and onion powder
- 3-4 tbsp peanut oil or any frying oil
- 1/2 cup pineapple juice
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1 tbsp less sodium soy sauce
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tbsp cornstarch + 2 tbsp water
- 2 green onions, chopped
Instructions
- Cut 1 lb of chicken into bite sized pieces and dry it well with paper towels. Add the chicken to a large bowl. Add 1/2 cup corn starch, salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder. Toss until well coated.
- Next, add 3-4 tablespoons of peanut oil to a pan on medium-high heat.
- Once the oil is hot add the chicken evenly to the bottom of the pan and allow it to cook for 3-4 minutes before stirring and cooking until crispy and golden on all sides.
- Once the chicken is fully cooked remove it from the pan and set aside.
- To make the sauce lower the heat in that same pan and add 1/2 cup pineapple juice, 1/4 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1 tbsp (less sodium) soy sauce, 1 tbsp minced garlic, and 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes.
- Allow that to simmer for 2 minutes before stirring in a cornstarch slurry ( 1 tbsp cornstarch + 2 tbsp water). Once the sauce has thickened add your chicken back to the pan, toss to coat, and serve!
- Top the whole pan of Sweet and Sour Chicken with chopped green onions. Enjoy! Serve over white rice.
Notes
- I like to use chicken breast for this recipe, but if your family prefers thighs, boneless thighs would work well too!
- Make sure to pat your chicken dry with a paper towel to ensure even coating before tossing in seasoning and cornstarch.
- I like to use peanut oil for this recipe, but you can use whatever frying oil you have on hand.
- If you really want to speed up this recipe you can cube up your chicken ahead of time and prep all the sauce ingredients in a bowl to add to the pan all at once.
- I like to top mine with fresh chopped green onions, but those are optional if you don’t have any on hand.
- I like to use apple cider vinegar for this recipe, but you can use white vinegar if that’s all you have on hand. I’d just start with 3/4 tsp since it has a stronger flavor.
- Serve right away. If the chicken sits in the sauce it won’t be as crispy.