Quick and Easy Sweet and Sour Chicken — This sweet and sour chicken recipe takes just 15 minutes to make and tastes way better than takeout. Perfect for a weeknight dinner!
Table of Contents
I’m all about a 15-minute dinner. Especially when it tastes better than what I’d get in a restaurant, it’s healthier, less expensive, and faster than calling for takeout. Score on all fronts.
This recipe features a simple sweet and sour sauce that’s packed with the perfect balance of sweet yet sour Asian flavors. Soy, sesame, garlic, and more.
The homemade sweet and sour sauce coats the chicken beautifully and really makes this dish what it is. You’ll likely have extra, which I could eat by the spoonful. It’s great over rice or veggies.
Before cooking the chicken it’s tossed with cornstarch, which helps keep it moist, tender, juicy, and provides a very lightly ‘breaded’ exterior without actually breading it.
Ingredients Needed
For both the chicken and the homemade sweet and sour sauce, you’ll need the following:
Sweet and Sour Sauce
- Granulated sugar
- Brown sugar
- Apple cider vinegar
- Ketchup
- Low-sodium soy sauce
- Sesame oil
- Garlic
- Cornstarch
Chicken
- Chicken breasts
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- Cornstarch
- Green onions (optional, for serving)
- Sesame seeds (optional, for serving)
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Sweet and Sour Chicken
Making homemade sweet and sour chicken is so much easier than you may think! If serving with rice, be sure to get it started first so it’s done by the time the chicken is ready to eat.
- Make the sweet and sour sauce: It consists of sugar, apple cider vinegar, ketchup, soy sauce, sesame oil, brown sugar, garlic, corn starch, and water. Add everything but the water and cornstarch to a saucepan.
- Bring the sauce to a boil, then combine the water and cornstarch in a separate bowl before adding it to the homemade sweet and sour sauce.
- Let that bubble away for a few minutes until it thickens up.
- Make the chicken: Add the diced chicken into a baggie with the cornstarch, salt, and pepper and toss to coat the chicken pieces fully.
- Fry the chicken in a skillet with a few tablespoons of olive oil (no need to deep fry!).
- Once the chicken is cooked, pour in the sweet and sour sauce and continue cooking until the chicken is coated in sauce and heated through.
Serving tip: I like to serve my homemade sweet and sour chicken with rice and sprinkle chopped scallions and sesame seeds on top as garnishes. I adore the contrasting textures!
Recipe FAQs
If desired, you could dice the chicken a day or two ahead of time and you can also whisk together the sweet and sour sauce beforehand. That way, all you have to do is quickly throw everything in a pan the day you plan on making the recipe.
I bet you could, although I prefer my chicken without pineapple.
If using canned pineapple, make sure it’s packed in water and not syrup. Drain well before adding to the skillet at the very end of the cook time.
If using fresh pineapple, add to the skillet just before stirring in the sauce. You want the pineapple to heat through, but still retain some bite.
If you want to make this Chinese sweet and sour chicken with veggies, like broccoli or sugar snap peas, add them after you add the sauce to the chicken and let them simmer in the sauce for a few minutes until they’re crisp tender.
This recipe calls for chicken breasts, but you could use thighs as well. You want boneless, skinless thighs though. I don’t recommend using bone-in chicken for this Chinese sweet and sour chicken recipe.
Video Tutorial
What to Serve with Sweet and Sour Chicken
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Easy Sweet and Sour Chicken
Ingredients
Sauce
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar, packed
- 3 cloves garlic, pressed or finely minced
- 2 tablespoons cold water
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Chicken
- about 1.25 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil, plus more if necessary
- 2 green onions, sliced into thin rounds, optional for garnishing
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, optional for garnishing
Instructions
Make the Sauce
- To a medium saucepan, add all ingredients except water and cornstarch, whisk to combine, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
- To a small bowl, add the water, cornstarch, and stir to combine.
- Add the water and cornstarch mixture to saucepan, reduce heat to low, and allow sauce to simmer for about 5 minutes while you make the chicken; whisk intermittently.
Make the Chicken
- To a large ziptop bag, add the chicken, cornstarch, salt and pepper to taste, seal, and shake to coat chicken evenly.
- To a large skillet, add 3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil, chicken, and cook over medium-high heat for about 5 to 7 minutes, or until chicken has cooked through. Stir and flip intermittently to ensure even cooking. If skillet seems dry while cooking, add an additional tablespoon or two of oil as necessary.
- After chicken has cooked though, reduce heat to low, add the sauce, stir to coat evenly, and allow it to simmer for a minute or two.
- Optionally garnish with green onions, sesame seeds, and serve immediately.
Notes
- Chicken is best warm and fresh but will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Chinese Chicken Recipes:
Better-Than-Takeout Cashew Chicken – Juicy chicken, crisp-tender vegetables, and crunchy cashews coated with the best garlicky soy sauce! Skip takeout and make your own restaurant-quality meal that’s easy, ready in 20 minutes, and healthier!
Easy Better-Than-Takeout Chicken Fried Rice – One-skillet, ready in 20 minutes, and you’ll never want takeout again after tasting how good homemade is! Way more flavor, not greasy, and loads of juicy chicken!
Healthy Sesame Chicken and Broccoli — Skip takeout and make this Asian favorite at home in just minutes!! So EASY and HEALTHIER than what you’d get in a restaurant but tastes just as AWESOME!!
Kung Pao Chicken Recipe — An easy, BETTER-THAN-TAKEOUT recipe with juicy chicken and such a flavorful sauce!! Don’t call for takeout when you can make this HEALTHIER version at home in 20 minutes!
Better-Than-Takeout Sticky Chicken — Stop calling for takeout or going to the mall food court and make this AMAZING sticky chicken at home in 15 minutes!! So EASY with the perfect balance of sweet and spicy with plenty of sticky sauce!!
Healthier Orange Chicken — Stop calling for takeout or going to the mall food court and make this HEALTHIER orange chicken at home in less than 10 minutes!! EASY, authentic, and so INCREDIBLE that you’ll never miss the fat and calories!!
Chicken Chow Mein — Chewy chow mein noodles, crisp-tender veggies, and juicy chicken are stir-fried in a sesame-soy sauce! It’s a SIMPLE and FAST recipe that anyone can make.
Originally posted on January 18, 2017 and reposted on August 12, 2022 with updated text.
Do you think I could substitute flour (or arrowroot powder) for the cornstarch in both sections? We have a corn allergy in our family. Thank you!
You could give it a try and see how it goes. I can’t say one way or the other if it will work or not so all you can do is try and see.
Made this for 2nd time last night. Had 3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (2.4 lb) so doubled sauce for serving over rice ( made generous sauce serving). My family loved it. No adjustments needed.
Made this for 2nd time last night. Had 3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (2.4 lb) so doubled sauce for serving over rice ( made generous sauce serving). My family loved it. No adjustments needed.
Thanks for the 5 star review and I am glad your family loves it and that you have made it twice already!
I didn’t want dinner to end! This was the very best Sweet and Sour Chicken I have ever made! I added pineapple, chopped broccoli, orange pepper and onion. Definitely will be making this again and again!
I didn’t want dinner to end! This was the very best Sweet and Sour Chicken I have ever made! I added pineapple, chopped broccoli, orange pepper and onion. Definitely will be making this again and again!
Thanks for the five star review and I’m glad this is the best sweet-and-sour chicken you have ever made and that you will be making it again and again!
We loved this quick and flavorful recipe. The pieces were a bit large so will cut them into 3/4″ inch chicken pieces next time. A+ recipe.
Your recipes are the best grandson ate alll of it whren we all had ours dished up
Your recipes are the best grandson ate alll of it whren we all had ours dished up
Thanks for the 5 star review and I’m glad your grandson is loving my recipes, too!
We love this recipe. I often make it in the crockpot (on low, cook 2-3 hours) and it’s good that way, too.
We love this recipe. I often make it in the crockpot (on low, cook 2-3 hours) and it’s good that way, too.
Thanks for the 5 star review and good to know that you love this recipe and make it often in your Crock Pot. Thanks for sharing what you do!
I made this recipe today. I was a little nervous because I had never made sweet and sour chicken before. It turned out SO DELICIOUS!!! Thank you for sharing this recipe!!! It’s one that I will definitely be making for many years to come!!! DELICIOUS!!!
I made this recipe today. I was a little nervous because I had never made sweet and sour chicken before. It turned out SO DELICIOUS!!! Thank you for sharing this recipe!!! It’s one that I will definitely be making for many years to come!!! DELICIOUS!!!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad that you will be making this for years to come! That’s wonderful!
The list of ingredients was given but why wasn’t there any measurements given as well for people who doesn’t have the time to watch the video
This recipe is very tasty. Our family loved it and said it is better than any restaurant version.
The minor changes I made were using boneless, skinless thigh meat and half the vinegar. I’d never used cornstarch as a coating before. I am amazed at how crispy the chicken turned out.
Thank you for a really yummy recipe!
This recipe is very tasty. Our family loved it and said it is better than any restaurant version.
The minor changes I made were using boneless, skinless thigh meat and half the vinegar. I’d never used cornstarch as a coating before. I am amazed at how crispy the chicken turned out.
Thank you for a really yummy recipe!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad that your family loved it better than any restaurant version!
great