Sweet and Sour Chicken with crispy chicken, pineapple, and bell peppers tastes just like takeout without the food coloring. Try this today!
Sweet and Sour Pork and Sweet and Sour Chicken are classic Chinese takeout options many of us are too afraid to make at home. Cooking with woks can be intimidating, but my recipe will prove it is much easier to make than you would think!
Sabrina’s Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts , (about 4 pieces) cut into 1-inch chunks
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- 2 eggs , beaten
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 cup pineapple chunks , cut into 1-inch chunks
- 1 red bell pepper , cut into 1-inch chunks
- 1 green bell pepper , cut into 1-inch chunks
- 1/2 yellow onion , cut into 1-inch chunks
- vegetable oil , for frying
Sweet and Sour Sauce
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/3 cup ketchup
- 4 teaspoons reduced sodium soy sauce
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
Instructions
- To make the sauce, whisk together the sugar, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, ketchup, soy sauce, and garlic into a small bowl.
- Pour enough vegetable oil into a Dutch oven or frying pan so that comes up from the bottom about an inch and a half. Preheat on medium-high heat.
- Add the cornstarch to a large ziplock bag then add chicken pieces and shake until well coated.
- Dip the chicken pieces into the egg, then into the flour before adding to the hot oil. Add in batches so as not to have more than a single layer of it in the oil at a time.
- Cook the chicken for 2-3 minutes, until cooked through and crispy.
- Remove to a cookie sheet (no paper towels!) and continue cooking the remaining batches of chicken.
- When done cooking remove all but a tablespoon of the oil, then add peppers, onion, and pineapple. Cook for 1-2 minutes, until crisp-tender.
- Add the chicken pieces and sauce, and stir until the sauce is thickened and bubbling.
- Serve immediately, with optional garnishes of sesame seeds or green onions.
Nutrition
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Table of Contents
About This Recipe
When I first started this blog, of all the Chinese Recipes that people asked for, the absolute top requested was sweet and sour chicken. I totally get it, it isn’t even just the recipe, but THAT SAUCE. When I was a teenager and I made this sauce for the first time I also actually started learning how to use chopsticks. So for a solid month (I kid you not, my mom was not thrilled with this), I used chopsticks for every meal and had a tiny little bowl of sauce to dip everything into it.
Chef’s Note
A word of advice: I don’t put the fried chicken on a paper towel to drain. While it may work to soak up the excess oil, it also causes it to steam and the batter on the chicken gets soft voiding our goal of crispy chicken pieces. You can use a paper towel to wipe off any oil from the cooking sheet after you’ve added them back to the wok.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Pounds Chicken Breasts: Cut into 1-inch chunks. You can use chicken thighs too.
- ½ Cup Cornstarch: This is used to create a base for the egg wash and flour to attach to.
- 2 Eggs and ¼ Cup Flour: These are the coating for the chicken.
- 1 Cup Pineapple Chunks: This is the secret ingredient that makes this recipe! Fresh or a can of drained pineapples both work.
- Vegetable Oil: This is used for frying. You can use a neutral oil like canola or sunflower oil.
- Vegetables: Red and green bell peppers, both cut into 1-inch chunks, add vibrant color and a mix of sweet and slightly bitter flavors. These can be substituted with other peppers or zucchini for a different texture. The onion, also cut into 1-inch chunks, provides aromatic flavor and slight sharpness; red onion or shallots are good alternatives.
- Sweet and Sour Sauce: White and brown sugar bring the sweet base with a hint of molasses; either dark or light brown sugar or coconut sugar can also be used. Apple Cider Vinegar is absolutely critical for bringing the sour flavor. Rice vinegar is a suitable substitute. Ketchup adds the base tomato flavor and natural red color. You can also use equal parts tomato paste. Soy Sauce can be substituted with tamari or coconut aminos which are also gluten-free. Garlic can be substituted with 2 teaspoons of garlic powder if fresh garlic is unavailable.
Kitchen Tools and Equipment
- Wok: Great for high heat, and quick cooking. A wok is a great addition to your kitchen if you love cooking Chinese food or stir fries in general.
- Large Frying Pan: I use a Cuisinart for most of my non-cast iron cooking unless I am going with a stainless steel option, then I choose my All-Clad.
- Frying Spider Strainer: A frying spider strainer is the quickest and easiest way to scoop out items that are fried without wasting too much time or getting too much oil out of the pan. You won’t have pieces burning like you would with a smaller strainer, plus it is SO inexpensive. I use it for almost all of my small fried items.
Can This Be Made Ahead?
This dish is best served fresh. If it isn’t served immediately the coating will soften and become soggy. You can easily store a batch in the fridge for up to 3 days before reheating and serving. Just keep in mind the breading won’t be crispy. The sauce can be kept in the fridge separately from any cooked chicken for up to a week.
How to Store
- Storing: Place the leftovers in separate airtight containers in the refrigerator. The chicken will stay fresh for up to 3 days, while the sauce and vegetables can last up to 4 days.
- Reheating: For the best results, reheat the chicken in an air fryer or oven to restore its crispiness. Warm the sauce and vegetables in the microwave or on the stovetop, then combine just before serving.
- Freezing: Freeze the chicken and sauce separately in freezer-safe containers for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating and serving.
Alternative Cooking Techniques
Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees. Coat chicken pieces as usual with cornstarch, egg, and flour. Arrange in a single layer in the air fryer basket, spray lightly with oil, and cook for 10-12 minutes, shaking halfway through. Air fry the vegetables and pineapple after the chicken. Make the sauce on the stovetop, toss the chicken and veggies into the heated sweet and sour sauce, and serve immediately.
Frequent Questions
For this recipe you want to keep the breading super crispy and light, which cornstarch will help you achieve. I have experimented with coating the chicken in both in a tempura batter and a straight cornstarch coating. I prefer cornstarch for ease of use, but either way, you don’t want something doughy that will absorb your sauce like a sponge.
You can reduce the sugar in half for less sweetness. For less tanginess, cut the vinegar from ½ to ¼ cup of vinegar.
Variations
- Vegan Sweet and Sour Tofu: Replace chicken with firm tofu, patting with with a paper towel it to remove excess moisture before frying. Use soy sauce or tamari for the sauce.
- Garlicky: If you’d really like to add some extra flavor to the flour, season with salt and black pepper and add 2 tablespoons of minced garlic or 1 tablespoon of powdered garlic to the chicken while frying. Add an extra tablespoon to the sauce when mixing.
Related Posts
More Sweet and Sour Recipes
Photos used in previous versions of this post.
Made this the other night for the family. I make a lot of Chinese dish’s of my own, but I must say this was the biggest hit so far.
I’m so glad everyone loved it, Phil!
I doubled the sauce because i like extra but don’t double the apple cider vinegar. Way too vinegary. Otherwise, really good
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for coming back to let me know!
I have made this tonight and it came out fantastic! So delishious and tender, definitely family’s new favourite. Thank you for the receipe.
Soooooo good!! Will definitely be making this often! All of your recipes I’ve tried have been super. Thank you for sharing!!
You’re welcome, Carmen!
I made this dish last night and it was absolutely delicious. I started by breaking down a fresh ripe pineapple, it was super sweet and juicy, yet perfectly tangy, so I think that really helped enhance the dish. I did cut my chicken a little too large, and qith the AP dredge left my chicken just a touch on the bland side but still very yummy. I went with low sodium soy sauce and the sauce seemed perfectly balanced so the is room for a dash of salt in the AP final dredge. I served this over a bed of Jasmine rice with siracha sauce. Thank you so much for such an awesome, easy to make recipe, that I will certainly make again.
You’re welcome, Richard! Sounds delicious!
Too much sour not enough sweet. Too much apple cider vinegar, a quarter cup would have been just fine. It’s a strong taste and overpowers all the other ingredients. It’s a strong flavor. Other than that it’s okay.
Thanks for noting this. I tried the General Tso’s eecipe from this site and that also had overpowering vinegar taste even after using half of the amount in the recipe. May try with a tablespoon and work my way up.
Hi,
I am presently in the process of trying this recipe. Looks soo yum!
However, do you think the texture or taste will change if i eliminate the flour and do a double coating of cornstarch?
Trying to stay away from the flour.
Thanks much
How did it turn out changing it up?
I hope you enjoyed it!
I haven’t made this yet but in the directions it says to move the chicken to a cookie sheet, then continue cooking until done. Does it go back into the oil or the oven? Thanks for your response
Sorry for the confusion. After you’ve cooked each batch of chicken, place them on a cookie sheet to rest. You’ll add all of the chicken back in once the sauce is complete. Hope this clears things up! Enjoy!!
Thank you for a great recipe!!
This sweet and sour chicken is ??
Turned out great. Hubby loved it <3
But to make 5 stars will add seasoning to the flour of the chicken before deep frying.
Will definitely make it again
This was super easy for me to make & it was very DELICIOUS! I will make this dish apart of my family’s dinner choices!
Thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Sabrina, I have some leftover fresh pineapple so went looking for a sweet/sour recipe and this one looks great. But…I also have a couple of ripe peaches that I need to do something with. Do you think I could incorporate them into this recipe? I noticed below that you’re pretty good with offering suggestions for substitutions and additions. Thanks so much.
I think the pineapple would work great but I think the peaches would’t hold up as well and would get mushy. Hope this helps!
Made this tonight for dinner. It was amazing! I would not have thought that sauce would taste as good as it did. Just the right amount of sweetness. Lots of flavor.
The only thing I changed is the type of oil. I used avocado oil with a little grapeseed oil to fry the chicken.
Thanks for the 5 star rating, Donna!
Lots of ingredients, however it was worth it! Glad I didn’t use the jar sauce! Lol
I love this!! I made it today and it is wwwaaaaayyyy better than take out!!! It is delish!!! I can’t wait to have it at lunch at school !!!
So glad you enjoyed it Lisa!
About how many adults would this serve?
4-6 depending on the serving size
Wonderful recipe. I’ve tried lots of sweet n sour recipes and this one is the best. Thanks for sharing. Deb
Thanks Deb!
Excellent! I used honey rather than white sugar for the sauce, adding some pineapple juice from the canned pineapples.
Thanks for the substitution suggestion. So glad you enjoyed it!
Question..when you say cookie sheet, does that mean it needs to go into the oven?
No, the cookie sheet is only meant to give you enough space to spread them out so that they cool evenly.
I felt like a real chef after making this. It came out perfect!
Awesome, Mila!
I prepared it today. Great dish, easy, very tasty
I made this tonight. It was delious! When I made the sauce it was so good I doubled it because I knew I was not going to keep my spoon out of it til dinner. Thanks.
It’s so dangerouly delicious!! Smart thinking!!
Do you know, roughly, how many this recipe serves? I would love to make this for a family get together but need to feed quite a few mouths.
This recipe yields 6 servings. Enjoy!
So the huge calorie count was the whole recipe? So divide by 6?
Thank you so much for catching that! It didn’t add in the number of servings. I’ve updated to read correctly now.
This was a huge hit with my family! Easy to make and definitely better than take out.
I’m so glad you all enjoyed it!
This was absolutely Great! It will be on my dinner rotation of favorites! Thanks! I always made sweet and sour pork from a cook book but now I go to Pinterest and so glad it’s here! Delicious! Happy family!
Thanks for dropping by to let me know! I’m so glad you guys enjoyed it!
I’m excited to try this recipe, but I notice it’s got a high concentration of vinegar in regards to the rest of the ingredients in the sauce, and that worries me. I’m really not a fan of vinegar and I’d like to cut down the amount used. Do you have any suggestions for substitute ingredients?
Unfortunately that is one of the prominent flavors in sweet and sour chicken (as well as orange chicken). Perhaps a different recipe? Have you considered maybe a General tso’s chicken or sesame chicken? Both are available on the blog.
Recently made this and it was awesome, thanks for the recipe. It has been requested again and again.
You’re welcome! So glad you love it so much to put it into rotation!
Would red wine vinegar be a good replacement? This looks so yummy.
It will change the flavor but if you’re ok with that, go for it 🙂
Can I use white vinegar instead of apple vinegar?
You can but it will produce a different taste.
Adding the onions is missing from the instructions, however, great recipe!
Thanks for catching that Allison! So glad you enjoyed it!
This tasted better than the chinese restaurant, everyone in my house loved it , I added a little sesame oil , fantastic , ??
Thanks so much! So glad you all enjoyed it! Now you can ditch the take out 🙂
Just made this, I really loved it. Thanks!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for coming back to let me know!
Can you tell me what is OJ concentrating it’s in the orange chicken
I’m not sure exactly what you’re asking. Can you clarify please?
This recipe is awesome, I made it for lunch on Newyear. Happy new year with love from Nigeria and thank you so much for the recipe.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for coming back to let me know! Happy new year to you as well!
Made this yesterday and it was a real hit. Thank you so much for the recipe.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for coming back to let me know!
Can I throw the pineapple in frozen or should I defrost it
You’ll want to have it thawed out. If it’s frozen, it will produce extra liquid. Enjoy!!
Best sweet and sour chicken recipe I’ve made yet. I added more of the veggies and also shredded carrots.
Thanks, Alane! So glad you enjoyed it!
Do you think it would taste the same if you used tomato sauce instead of ketchup?
If you decide to substitute the ketchup for tomato sauce, you may need to adjust the amount of brown sugar and apple cider vinegar because tomato sauce isn’t as sweet as ketchup. I’d love to know how it turns out for you after trying it though. Enjoy!
This recipe is 5 star! Way better than take-out. Thank you for the recipe.
Thanks Harmony!
Made this last night for my mother in law. It was suuuuper delicious! Looked just like the pictures too
Love it! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and let me know how much you enjoyed it!
AMAZING and so easy
Thank you for the 5 star rating Lisa! Glad you enjoyed it!
Wow I just made this dish. It looks and smells fantastic. My 7,8 and 4 yr old are excited to taste it too. Thank you ?
Thanks Mel! Hope you all enjoyed it!
Could i use, balsamic vinegar instead of apple vinager?
You can but it will product a different taste. Balsamic is slightly sweet where apple cider vinegar is more tart and acidic.
Yummy! Such a finger licking dish, Sabrina! I will have to give it a try!
Thanks!
I just made this just like the recipe said. And it was absolutely DELICIOUS. Thank you for this recipe. I will never eat at a restaurant again. Even cheaper at home because I had all the ingredients at home except chicken. ???
Awesome!! Thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know how much you enjoyed it!
Currently drooling over these photos, and I wish I were kidding. Looks even better than takeout! Gotta try it soon!
You can’t beat a great sweet ‘n sour recipe, and homemade is often so much better takeout. This looks fantastic!
Thanks!
This is my son’s and my daughter’s favorite thing to order from Chinese takeout! 🙂 Going to have to make this for them soon.
This looks SO good! I can’t wait to try this! I’m sure my family will love this!!
I love chicken recipes! Thanks.
You’re welcome Bea! Enjoy!
Girl! One of my all time favorites! This looks so saucy too, which means it’s my kinda sweet sour chicken! Bring it on!
Thanks Krista!!
It came out fantastic. The only thing I added was thinly Sliced carrots and zucchini. I would recommend making this for sure. The chicken was very tender and moist in the coating. Thanks!
I made this dish today and was really great.
Thank you so much for coming back to let me know how much you enjoyed it!
Made it love it, a little more chicken or less sauce, but yummy!