Create crispy Sweet and Sour Chicken at home. It’s SO easy!
Sweet and Sour Chicken has been a longtime childhood favorite. Though that statement comes with a caveat. All Sweet and Sour Chicken is not created equal and depending on the restaurant, the quality can vary greatly. Certain types of expedient Chinese food establishments often produce a plate that contains far more batter than tasty chicken, and the sauce is some unholy conglomerate of what looks like corn syrup and red food dye. I don’t know about you, but personally I like my food to resemble something from whence it came.
There are generally two different methods to breading the chicken for this dish. There is the ‘fried chicken’ approach, where the breading is created by dredging the chicken in egg whites and flour. A perfectly acceptable way to make Sweet and Sour chicken. However, I prefer to dip the chicken into a mixture that resembles a pancake batter. The thick coating with the baking powder really puffs up when cooked, creating a thick, crispy coating, while keeping the chicken moist and tender.
Sweet with a bit of tang, this sweet and sour sauce contains no food dye or fruit punch. A quick simmer on the stove of oranges, lemons, and ginger create the base; while vinegar is added for zip, a little ketchup for color and added sweetness, and a touch of plum sauce to round out the flavors. A corn starch slurry thickens the sauce – this sauce is a medium thickness, so depending on your preference add little more or less corn starch slurry (but go slowly – the sauce will take a little time to thicken up once the slurry is added).
I recommend serving the sweet and sour sauce separately from the chicken. Otherwise, you run the risk of having soggy, instead of crispy chicken – and no one wants that. If you’d like, serve on top of a bed of rice garnished with sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds. This Sweet and Sour Chicken will be a new family favorite – and you can make it in less time than it takes to get delivery… and tastier too.
- Sauce
- 2 cups water
- 2 oranges, sliced ¼-inch
- 1 lemon, sliced ¼-inch
- 1-inch ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¼ cup white vinegar
- ⅛ cup ketchup
- ⅛ cup plum sauce
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch, dissolved in ¼ cup water
- Batter
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup corn starch
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
- ⅔ cups water
- 1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into ¾-inch cubes
- vegetable oil
- Serve with: (optional)
- cooked rice
- sliced scallions
- To make the sauce, bring the water to a boil in a small sauce pan. Add the orange, lemon, and ginger. Simmer for 20 minutes.
- While the sauce is simmering, work on the batter. In a large bowl combine the flour, corn starch, baking powder, egg, salt, pepper, and water. Whisk until smooth. Add the cubed chicken and stir to coat each piece. Allow the chicken to sit in the batter for 15 minutes.
- Once the makings of the sauce has simmered, use a sieve to remove the orange, lemon, and ginger. While the sieve containing the ingredients is over the pot, use a large wooden spoon to press any remaining juice into the pot - then discard the remnants. To the pot, add the sugar, vinegar, ketchup, and plum sauce. Give the corn starch slurry a stir, in case any of it has solidified on the bottom. Then slowly stir in the corn starch slurry to the sauce. Continue to stir until the sauce has thickened. Remove from heat and cover.
- Add at least 1-inch of vegetable oil to a wok. (If you don't have a wok, use a large sauce pan). Heat the oil to 375 degrees F. Working in batches, carefully add the battered chicken, one piece at a time. Using a spider or slotted spoon, constantly turn and move the chicken to ensure even cooking. Cook for 6 - 8 minutes, until golden brown. Remove and allow to cool on a plate lined with paper towels. Continue cooking the other batches in this manner.
- Serve the chicken with a side of sweet and sour sauce. (I like to serve them separately so the sauce doesn't make the battered chicken soggy). If you like, serve with rice and scallions. Enjoy!
Made this last night. It was a hit with my family! Only thing I did different was adding fresh pineapple and red peppers in the sauce. Sure will be making this again.
This is one of the first meals I made for my boyfriend when we moved in together and 6 years later he still asks me to make it at least twice a month and refuses to eat sweet and sour chicken from restaurants. Thank you so much for the beautiful recipe
I’ve been looking for a good restaurant-style sweet & sour chicken recipe for a while. Although I found a few that were decent (and some that were just dreadful), this one is easily the closest to what I’ve been searching for.
The batter was excellent! Just the right consistence and it held together nicely when frying.
I couldn’t find plum sauce anywhere, but I read that Hoisin was a reasonable substitute, so I tried that. It turned out VERY good. As someone else mentioned, it was maybe a little too much sweet and not enough sour for my taste (although the Hoisin sauce may to blame for that), but otherwise, very enjoyable.
Next time I make this (and it will be soon!), I may add an extra tablespoon of vinegar, or maybe I’ll try light-brown sugar instead of white so it’s not as sweet. I’d also add a drop or two of Sriracha just to give it some kick, but again, that’s just personal taste.
All that aside, this is easily one of the best sweet & sour recipes I’ve tried.
That’s great, Victor! I’m all for tweaking to best fit your tastes! I’m so glad you enjoyed the dish… it’s definitely a favorite in our house. Hope you have a great weekend! 🙂
i don’t even need to taste this before i give you a standing ovation. your recipe’s construct and shared cookery advice is thoughtful, on point, and pushes what sweet and sour should be. i can’t wait to drag this into my kitchen. brava, kathleen… brava!
Aww… thank you so much for the incredibly sweet comment! I can’t tell you how happy it makes me that you think so well of my recipes. This is one of my husbands very favorite dishes… totally addictive 🙂
it has been a while since i returned because i am actually cooking up and eating and playing with almost everything i grabbed from you. just this one recipe for sweet and sour has been made and enjoyed like three times+ because i am a very, very enthusiastic happy pig like that. why the “+”? my friend asked me to make some for her the other day (she broke her wrist) and i kept sticking my travel chopsticks in the delivery container all the way to her apartment. yes, i have no shame in my game, kathleen 🙂 i am going to go for another round of new hapanom grazes shortly… until ~
I was just thinking about you the other day, wondering if you had the opportunity to try any of the recipes you mentioned! I’m so glad to hear you’re having fun making/playing with the recipes! The sweet and sour chicken is one of my husband’s favorites – I think he could eat the entire dish to himself 😉
Ha! You sound like me! (It’s ok to have no shame in your game, right?) I hope by the time you got to your friends house, there were some nuggets left!
Looking forward to hearing what recipes pique your interests next!
i made this last night for my family, and everybody loved it! it was spot on for what i hoped for in a takeout style sweet and sour chicken. i really appreciated that unlike other asian chicken recipes i have tried before, this was simply battered rather than egged and dredged. i followed the recipe exactly, and the only slight alteration i made after following it as written and tasting the sauce, was to add a spoonful of soy sauce and a squeeze of lemon juice when the sauce was finished, just to make it a little brighter in to bring sour back into the balance, as it was quite sweet. all in all, it was delicious, simple to prepare and i will certainly make it again in the future
Hi Angelina. Thank you so much for the wonderful comment! I am so happy that you and your family enjoyed the dish! It’s definitely on regular rotation in my house as well. I love your idea to add a bit of soy sauce and lemon to the sauce – I bet that really rounds out some of the flavors. I will have to try that next time!
I agree with you on the batter and I love the crepe approaching too! I normally do not like frying things at home but man, this is the only way to get sweet and sour chicken right!
I really love the method of making sweet and sour sauce. It seems a bit unconventional, but so refreshing and burst with great flavor! Got to try out this one soon 🙂
You know, I’m not big into frying things at home either – but there are just some things I can’t resist! The sauce does have a bit of different taste – a little thinner and not so sweet, but I thought the fresh flavors paired nicely with the heavier battered chicken 🙂
This looks perfect! It will be on my menu this week…YUM!
Thanks! I hope you enjoy!
Wow!! Doesn’t this look delicious! What a great recipe!! 🙂 SO nice! Hope that you have a lovely rest of your weekend!
Thanks, Cailee! 🙂
Cannot remember the last time I had sweet and sour chicken! Definitely craving some to devour right now.. I must recreate the recipe!
I hope you do! 🙂
I agree wholeheartedly with “I like food to resemble where it came from”!!! I can’t count the number of times I have seen a “big” blogger post an Asian recipe of some sort then I check out the recipe only to find that the sauce is only made with soy sauce and sugar (seriously, one recipe I have in mind had 60K pins with a soy sauce + sugar sauce! I was OFFENDED!).
So this is why I stalk bloggers like you who actually know good food! This is fab, that batter you use is pretty much the batter my mother uses for all sorts of Japanese deep fried goodness, it’s my “go to” frying batter. It’s the corn starch I think, that makes it different to others? It is so wrong that it’s 7.07am here in Sydney and all I want to do is reach into my computer screen and take every single piece I of chicken I see (drowning in the sauce of course).
YUM. Oh jeez, my mouth is actually watering. I am a disgrace.
I agree – there are times my Asian side aches with something like a soy sauce/sugar = sauce. So I like adding cornstarch to my fry batters because it helps keep a light breading.
‘Deep fried goodness,’ does your mother deliver?? 😉
One of my favorite takeaway dishes, I can’t wait to try your recipe.
I hope you enjoy!
Sweet and sour chicken has been a favorite of mine since I can remember! I just love it, looking at the pictures, I want to dig in. So delicious and colorful. Never tried making it at home, but might try, since your recipe and instructions are perfect! This sauce looks so good…
Thanks, Mira! Give it a try – it’s surprising easy!