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Sweet and Sour Chicken is a typical dish you'll find at Chinese-American restaurants. I love the crispy, tangy flavor of this sweet and sour chicken recipe! It's best served with white rice, vegetables, and my homemade sweet and sour chicken sauce.
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4.38 from 16 votes

Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe

Sweet and Sour Chicken is a typical dish you'll find at Chinese-American restaurants. I love the crispy chicken, tangy flavor sweet and sour sauce, and fruity addition of pineapples! It's best served with white rice and stir fried vegetables.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Chinese
Servings: 4
Author: Becky Hardin

Ingredients

Special tools:

  • Food thermometer
  • Kitchen Spider Skimmer not necessary but very helpful

For the sauce

For the Chicken & Vegetables:

  • 1 pound chicken breasts boneless skinless
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 quarts peanut or vegetable oil plus 3 tablespoons for the batter
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup cornstarch
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1¼ cups water
  • 2 red bell peppers stem and seeds removed and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 6 scallions cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 4 slices fresh pineapple cut into 1-inch wedges

For Serving:

  • White rice cooked per package directions.

Instructions

For the Sweet and Sour Sauce:

  • Prepare sauce according to directions (click recipe link above)
    1 1/4 cup Sweet and Sour Sauce

For the Chicken & Vegetables:

  • Place the chicken breast on a cutting board and cut them into small pieces.
    1 pound chicken breasts
    cutting the chicken breasts into bite size cubes with knife
  • Pat dry with another paper towel. Patting them dry helps in sticking seasoning on them.
    pat chicken cubes with kitchen towel
  • Season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
    Kosher salt, Freshly ground black pepper
    season chicken cubes with salt and pepper
  • Pour 2 quarts oil (or enough to measure about 1½-inches deep) in a large Dutch oven set over medium-high heat. Bring the oil to 350 degrees.
    2 quarts peanut or vegetable oil plus 3 tablespoons for the batter
    check the oil temperature with the cooking thermometer
  • While the oil heats, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, 2 teaspoons kosher salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper in a large mixing bowl. Add the water and the remaining 3 tablespoons oil; whisk until smooth.
    Kosher salt, Freshly ground black pepper, 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 cup cornstarch, 2 teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, 1¼ cups water
    Combine all ingredients in medium size glass bowl and mix.
  • Place the chicken cubes in the batter and stir to completely coat.
    coat all chicken cubes with the batter
  • Once the oil reaches 350°F, use a fork to carefully drop each battered chicken cube into the hot oil. (Have a second fork ready to use to release the chicken into the oil, if necessary.)
    Food thermometer
    drop the coated chicken cubes in hot oil
  • Check the oil temperature frequently and adjust the heat, up or down, to keep the temperature between 350-375 degrees F.
    cook until 350-375F temperature
  • Use a spider skimmer to stir the chicken pieces gently to prevent them from sticking together.
    Cook until chicken is golden, 2-3 minutes each batch. Transfer chicken to paper towel-lined half of the prepared rack.
    Repeat process until all the battered chicken is fried.
    Kitchen Spider Skimmer
  • When all the chicken has been cooked, remove the pan from the heat. Carefully pour all, except 1-2 tablespoons oil, into a heatproof bowl.
  • Return the Dutch oven to the stovetop set over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the red pepper, half the cut scallions, and all the pineapple chunks. Cook 2-3 minutes or until the red pepper is crisp-tender.
    2 red bell peppers, 6 scallions, 4 slices fresh pineapple
    add all veggies and pineapple cubes to make the sauce
  • Add 1-cup sauce to the vegetable mixture and cook until sauce is heated through, about 1 minute.
    add the sweet and sour sauce
  • Add the chicken and stir gently to coat the chicken. Cook just enough to heat the chicken through and serve immediately over cooked white rice and with the remaining sweet and sour sauce.
    White rice cooked per package directions.
    add in fried chicken cubes and mix well.
  • Garnish with the remaining half of cut scallions.

Video

Notes

  • If you like spicy, feel free to add some red chili peppers.
  • I use fresh bell peppers and fresh pineapple here, but you can add canned pineapple as well. Make sure to drain well before adding in the sauce. 
  • I prefer using boneless chicken in Asian-inspired recipes, but you can also use boneless skinless chicken thighs. 
  • If you like garlicky sauce, feel free to add 1 tsp minced garlic along with veggies.

Nutrition

Calories: 433kcal | Carbohydrates: 69g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 72mg | Sodium: 283mg | Potassium: 921mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 2125IU | Vitamin C: 120.9mg | Calcium: 125mg | Iron: 3mg