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My sister Anna shared this sweet and sour chicken recipe with me because her family absolutely loved it. It’s a winner indeed; the best orange chicken I’ve ever tried! Anyway, I pinned it for safe keeping and finally whipped it out.
My son’s eyes lit up when he realized he was having “Panda” for dinner – in his world, all Asian food is “Panda.” Except, this is way way WAY better than takeout! I’m super thrilled that I know exactly what went into this sweet and sour chicken; no preservatives and I even used organic chicken. #patontheback for Mom :).
I tracked down the original recipe source and it was the talented Mel of Mel’s Kitchen Cafe who said it was easily the most popular recipe on her blog (yeah – I can see why!). The only thing I changed was adding an extra egg for easier coating.
This really is quite a treat. Make it tonight!
Ingredients for Orange Chicken:
2 lbs (about 4 Medium) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 cup cornstarch
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup extra light olive oil, canola or vegetable oil to saute, plus more as needed
Ingredients for the Sweet and Sour Sauce:
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
4 Tbsp ketchup
1 Tbsp soy sauce
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp garlic salt
How to Make Sweet and Sour Chicken:
1. Preheat oven to 325˚F. Cut chicken breasts into 1-inch pieces and season with salt and pepper.
2. Place 1 cup cornstarch into a gallon-sized ziploc bag, add chicken and toss to coat (go on, toss it up, just make sure the bag is closed; that part is important).
3. Heat 1/4 cup oil in a large, heavy bottom pot (I used my French oven with nice tall walls to reduce splatterage on the stove).
4. In a shallow dish, whisk together 3 eggs. Dip the cornstarch-dredged chicken pieces into the beaten egg, coating both sides then transfer the chicken to the very hot oil.
5. Cook chicken in hot oil about 30 seconds per side or until golden. Having very hot oil is key. You don’t want to cook the chicken through, but just until golden. Transfer chicken to a 9×13 baking dish and continue dipping and sautéing remaining chicken, adding more oil as necessary.
Cooking tip: if you add oil to the pot, let it heat up a little before you add more chicken.
6. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the sauce ingredients: 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar, 4 Tbsp ketchup, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 3/4 cup sugar and 1 tsp garlic salt.
7. Pour sauce over your sauteed chicken pieces and toss to coat. Bake uncovered at 325˚F for 1 hour, turning the chicken twice while baking to coat with sauce.
Serve warm or hot over steamy white rice, and crisp tender broccoli for a balanced meal.
My son spotted this photo as I was putting the post together and the first words out of his mouth, “Can you make that for me?” :). Mel, thank you so much for sharing this goodness! It’s music to my ears when my son makes requests like that.
Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 lbs about 4 Medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 1 cup corn starch
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1/4 cup extra light olive oil, canola or vegetable oil to saute, plus more as needed
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 4 Tbsp ketchup
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp garlic salt
Instructions
How to Make Sweet and Sour Chicken: Preheat oven to 325˚F.
- Cut chicken breasts into 1-inch pieces and season with salt and pepper.
- Place 1 cup cornstarch into a gallon-sized ziploc bag, add chicken and toss to coat.
- Heat 1/4 cup oil in a large, heavy bottom pot (I used my French oven with nice tall walls to reduce splatterage on the stove).
- In a shallow dish, whisk together 3 eggs. Dip the cornstarch-dredged chicken pieces into the beaten egg, coating both sides then transfer chicken to the very hot oil.
- Cook chicken in hot oil about 30 seconds per side or until golden. Having very hot oil is key. You don't want to cook the chicken through, but just until golden. Transfer chicken to a 9x13 baking dish and continue dipping and sautéing remaining chicken, adding more oil as necessary. Cooking tip: if you add oil to the pot, let it heat up a little before you add more chicken.
- In a medium bowl, stir together sauce ingredients: 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar, 4 Tbsp ketchup, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 3/4 cup sugar and 1 tsp garlic salt.
- Pour sauce over your sautéed chicken pieces and toss to coat. Bake uncovered at 325˚F for 1 hour, turning the chicken twice while baking to coat with sauce. Serve warm or hot over steamy white rice, and crisp tender broccoli for a balanced meal.
♥ FAVORITE THINGS ♥
Shown in this post: (nope, no one paid us to write this; just stuff we love):
*My favorite French oven – somehow food just tastes better when you use it 😉
*This covered 9×12 baking dish comes with a lid, reducing foil waste; and it’s perdy.
*My glass mixing bowls are so versatile; everything from this sauce to your morning cereal 😉
*These cooking utensils are next to my stove always in reach on their little caddy.
You outdid yourself, Natasha! This was wayyyyy better than takeout and probably healthier too. I served this with brown rice and steamed broccoli, and it was a hit. Next time I will probably double the sauce recipe, and make sure that my oil is super hot before I add the dredged chicken in it. My oil wasn’t hot enough for the first batch of dredged chicken, and the egg ended up getting a bit scrambled.
Hi Rebecca! So glad you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for the feedback!
I made this tonight for dinner absolutely delicious. The chicken is so tinder and tasty. Thank you I know many of your recipes are fabulous my daughter in law is always making something different and she recommended you to me. All good♥️
Hello Betty, thank you for sharing your experience trying out this recipe. I’m happy that she recommended this to you!
I TRIED YOUR GENERAL TSO’S CHICKEN WITH A COUPLE OF REVISIONS.
INSTEAD OF SUGAR , I USED 10 PACKETS OF SPLENDA .
ALSO, AFTER I ADDED THE CHICKEN , I SLOW SIMMERED AND MIXED IT FOR ABOUT 6 MINUTES .
CAME OUT REALLY GOOD.
Hi Chester, thank you for sharing your experiment. I’m glad it turned out well.
I don’t normally comment, but I had to on this one! This is hands down better than any restaurant sweet and sour chicken. I made it with fried rice, broccoli, and egg rolls. The chicken was fantastic! The whole pan was gone quick
That’s really awesome feedback, thank you so much for sharing!
This meal was amazing!! I couldn’t get enough of it, and it was especially good for leftovers. Thanks for the great recipe as this will be used over and over again in our household!
Hi Dan, you are very welcome. I’m glad you loved it!
Another recipe tried. I recommend! It tastes great with rice and steamed broccoli.
Thank you for your lovely review, Aleksandra!
Can I not sugar in this recipe? I don’t have any sugar to use..
Hi Mischa, I haven’t tested this myself but one of my readers reported cutting down the sugar to 1/2 cup with good results. I haven’t tried this recipe with any sugar substitutes to be able to give advice on anything else.
I am teaching my 14-year-old great-niece how to cook. She mixed up the sauce and said this looks pretty gross. I told her to stir and taste. She tasted and said what! How can this so taste so good! We all loved this recipe! And so easy! My niece now makes it for her family at home. Thanks for such a great addition to our family dinners/
You’re welcome, Karen. Thank you for sharing that with us, glad the recipe turned out great!
Thank you for another fantastic recipe! I make this usually once a month and the whole family loves it.
That’s so great, Marsha! I’m so happy you enjoyed that!
Where would I find the orange sauce recipe for this chicken? Thank you!
Hi Brenda, the sweet and sour sauce is included in this recipe.
Do you have a recipe for orange chicken Natasha?
Hi Brenda, I have the General Tso’s Chicken version.
can i sub white vinegar for apple cider vinegar in sweet and sour chicken recipe
Hi Mary, I haven’t tried that substitution, but one reader said she tried regular vinegar and had good results. I can’t say for sure what the difference in taste will be with white wine vinegar without actually trying it myself.
Hi Mary
Did you try the recipe with the white wine / grape vinegar? And how was the result?
Made this for dinner tonight and my family loved it – best S&S chicken I’ve had.
I do have one question, though. When I dipped the chicken in the egg wash, it appeared the corn starch almost washed off completely. It tasted great, but I’m wondering why you use the corn starch if the egg cleans most of it off. Forgive me if that is a beginner’s question, but I am curious.
Again – LOVED the taste and will be making it again next week. Thanks!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that Jack! Some of the corn starch will come off but a good amount stays on the chicken gets “absorbed”!
What if you just combine the cornstarch with egg , make a batter type thing and then add the chicken to the batter. ?
Hi Tanya, I haven’t tested that but I think it could work. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe
made this for dinner tonight. My husbsnd loved it and he does not usually like chicken, it was very tasty. Will be making it again. Love your receipes.
That is great to hear, Sandy! Thank you for sharing your good feedback with us.
Everyone loved it, including my picky 9 year old! Will definitely make again and again. It’s like making your own Chinese take out at home, but better! Thanks for a great recipe!
That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite, Erin!
I read several of the comments to see what I was missing because you call it orange chicken. Where is the orange in the recipe?
It looks amazing and I plan on giving it a try, but I was wondering about the orange.
Hi Terrie, it is just naming of the recipe. General Tso’s Chicken is also often referred to as ‘Orange Chicken’
Natasha, this was wonderful! I made it tonight and I questioned, “What, no pineapple and no green pepper?” I did not miss it. The sauce was perfect. I am a widow and this is the type of recipes I am collecting in this stage of life. It was tasty, easy, economical, and very satisfying! I liked better than take out. Ty! I posted on FB with a link to your website. Let me know if this is unacceptable. Ty, again!
Love it! I am so happy to hear that you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you so much for sharing your great feedback with us, Lora.
Love your cooking! Excellent and wonderful talent!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for this great review Melissa!
I made this recipe. Absolutely Delicious! I was wanting to try it using pork. Could I use this same recipe for pork?
I bet it could work with a few adjustments. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.
Tried Sweet and sour chicken last night I made double sauce wonderful recipe thank you Natasha .I also made Mongolian beef my 3 kids and hubby never left anything on their plates love all your recipes .
Yum! Craving that right now! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe Wendy!
I doubled the sauce and it was delicious. My teenagers love it. Thank you Natasha!
You’re welcome! I am so glad they loved this recipe.
Natasha-
My 3 daughters and I made this last night as they all wanted to help and were excited to try the dish. It turned out perfectly and there were no leftovers. Thank you so much for the tasty recipe!!
You’re welcome! I’m glad you had a great time with your daughters and you all enjoyed it.
I’ve made your beef and broccoli which was delicious and new I couldn’t go wrong making this dish. I made shrimp instead of chicken and the sauce was amazing. I still coated the shrimp the same and was pleasantly surprised at how tasty this recipe was. Again another hit w my 4yo!! Thanks Natasha
Nice to know that you loved it with shrimp too! Thanks for sharing it with us, I’m sure others would like to try your version too.
Can I use boneless chicken thighs instead of chicken breast? That’s all I have now and would love to try this. I have made so many of your recipes and love all of them. My kids and husband loves them as well. You have such talent. Thank you.
Thighs would work too, but they do take more time to pick through.