You have to try this Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe - healthier and tastier than any takeout! @natashaskitchen

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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!

You have to try this Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe - healthier and tastier than any takeout! @natashaskitchen

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

You have to try this Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe - healthier and tastier than any takeout! @natashaskitchen

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

Sweet and Sour Chicken-2

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.

Sweet and Sour Chicken-3

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).

Sweet and Sour Chicken-5

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.

Sweet and Sour Chicken-6

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.

Sweet and Sour Chicken-7

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.

Sweet and Sour Chicken-8

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.

Sweet and Sour Chicken-9

Sweet and Sour Chicken-4

Serve warm or hot over steamy white rice, and crisp tender broccoli for a balanced meal.

You have to try this Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe - healthier and tastier than any takeout! @natashaskitchen

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.

You have to try this Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe - healthier and tastier than any takeout! @natashaskitchen

Natasha's Kitchen Cookbook

Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe

4.89 from 137 votes
Author: Natasha of NatashasKitchen.com
sweet and sour chicken over rice
Tender chicken breast in a mouthwatering homemade sweet and sour sauce. The Chicken becomes so juicy in the oven.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients 

Servings: 6 -8

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.
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Asian
Keyword: Sweet and Sour Chicken
Skill Level: Medium
Cost to Make: $$

Final Final Picmonkey Hashtag banner
You have to try this Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe - healthier and tastier than any takeout! @natashaskitchen
♥ 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.

What is the most requested meal in your house? 

Natasha Kravchuk

Welcome to my kitchen! I am Natasha, the blogger behind Natasha's Kitchen (since 2009). My husband and I run this blog together and share only our best, family approved and tested recipes with YOU. Thanks for stopping by! We are so happy you're here.

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Comments

  • teresa
    June 27, 2015

    This recipe is fantastic!, the chicken was tender and delicious a hit with all the family, thank you 🙂

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      June 27, 2015

      That’s so great! Thanks Teresa for the awesome review!

      Reply

  • Samantha
    June 1, 2015

    We tried your sweet and sour chicken and it was fantastic!!!!! Three kids (6,9,11) and 2 adults and fighting over the last bites. Thanks.

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      June 1, 2015

      What an entertaining scene I’m picturing! 😉 Thanks so much for sharing your awesome review 🙂

      Reply

  • alicia
    May 14, 2015

    Tried it tonight very good. Thank you

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      May 15, 2015

      I’m so glad! Thanks Alicia 🙂

      Reply

  • Faye
    May 14, 2015

    Hi Natasha, my other half loves sweet and sour chicken and I really want to try this, just a quick question: does the chicken batter stay crisp as it is cooking in the oven? Wouldn’t really like it to go soft. Normally I would imagine you deep fry the chicken in batter then toss in the sweet and sour sauce last minute before serving. Never seen a recipe for this cooked in the oven, it looks a lot less of a faff than other methods. Thank you : )

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      May 14, 2015

      The end result is soft and not really crisp at all. It’s similar in texture to what you’d get at Panda Express (except it tastes way better) 🙂

      Reply

  • Jessica
    May 12, 2015

    This looks delicious! Im wondering if I can make this in a crock pot?

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      May 13, 2015

      I haven’t tried it in a slow cooker so I’m not sure.

      Reply

  • Jennifer
    May 11, 2015

    This was so delicious! And easy to make! Everyone loved it. 🙂

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      May 11, 2015

      Jennifer, thank you for the great review :).

      Reply

  • John
    May 10, 2015

    Delicious – the only changes I made were adding canned chunked pineapple and roughly chopped red and orange bell pepper. I also toasted the sesame seeds prior to adding on top of the finished and mixing seeds well. I severed with my favorite online fried rice recipe. Great suggestion for serving with the steamed broccoli.

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      May 10, 2015

      I love the ideas of pineapple and bell peppers. Mmmm. You’re making me hungry!

      Reply

  • Augustine
    April 9, 2015

    Uh… MAZING! Thank you so much for this recipe! My husband and I could not stop eating it! So, we only had so much left overs 🙂 I reduced the sugar to 1/2 cup and it was still sweet. I also made extra sauce on the side to put over. LOVE IT!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      April 9, 2015

      I’m so happy you both enjoyed the recipe. Thanks for your great review! Also thank you for sharing your modifications. 🙂

      Reply

  • Roxane
    April 8, 2015

    Hi ! This looks amazing really want to try but do you know if i can substitute the egg with another ingredient?? I’m intolerant to egg and would much rather have it without 🙂 thanks x

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      April 8, 2015

      Hi Roxane, I wish I could be more helpful, but I just haven’t experimented with any egg substitutes to see if they would provide the same results when frying. I even went back to the original recipe and couldn’t find anything helpful there either.

      Reply

  • Jill
    March 31, 2015

    Thanks for sharing this recipe. I look forward to trying it.

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      April 1, 2015

      You’re so welcome! I hope you love it! 🙂

      Reply

  • Tabita
    March 31, 2015

    I made this recipe tree thimes and I will make it again my son love this .The only will not add only half of the apple vinegar because is to sour I like it more sweet .Thank you for the recipe .

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      March 31, 2015

      I’m so happy you and your son are enjoying the recipe! 🙂

      Reply

  • Deborah Tate
    March 30, 2015

    Where is the pineapple for the Sweet and Sour chicken

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      March 30, 2015

      Do you add pineapple juice to yours or actual chunks of pineapple? Either way, it sounds yummy!

      Reply

  • Marie
    March 30, 2015

    Hello,Natasha,I was wondering if I can leave the chicken with the cornstarch in the refrigerator until tomorrow?

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      March 30, 2015

      Hi Marie, Sorry I couldn’t get to your comment sooner. I haven’t tried it, but I think the corn starch might become paste-like if you put it in the fridge overnight. It’s probably best to dip this in cornstarch and then sauté soon after.

      Reply

  • Miya
    March 25, 2015

    Hey, this looks like a really good recipe but i have a question, does the chicken taste good with the apple cider viniger, because it smells really bad. So i was wondering if it will taste good because of the pungent smell the sauce has.

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      March 25, 2015

      It does smell strong initially but after baking for an hour, it mellows down and tastes great with the chicken.

      Reply

  • char
    March 23, 2015

    Amazing!!!! This recipe was super delicious. First time ever making this and was shocked. This has out beaten the Chinese food we have had lately at restaurants. 🙂

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      March 23, 2015

      That’s so great! Thank you for sharing your awesome review!

      Reply

  • Diana
    March 9, 2015

    Just made this. Very good!!! I used 1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange Juice and 1/4 cup Apple cider vinegar. Other than that followed the recipe. O and at the end I toasted some sesame seeds and mixed with chicken.

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      March 9, 2015

      Thanks so much for sharing Diana 🙂 I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe. I love the idea of adding toasted sesame seeds!

      Reply

  • Olya
    February 25, 2015

    This is SOOOOO good! I think we are a litle obsessed with it 😉 I make it often! Love your website!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      February 25, 2015

      Ha! That’s awesome! Thanks so much for the great review and your sweet compliment 🙂

      Reply

  • Joseph
    February 23, 2015

    Thanks for the recipe! I made this for my family for the holiday today. Instead of rice. I used rice noodles. I thank you again for this and the борщ.

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      February 23, 2015

      Thank you for the great review and you are welcome Jeseph :).

      Reply

  • Rechy
    February 23, 2015

    I made this last week. It made my husband’s day….which obviously made mine! Thanks so much! The step by step instructions really helped 🙂

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      February 23, 2015

      I’m so happy you enjoyed the recipe! I write out and photograph recipes the way I would want to see them and I’m so happy it was helpful to you too! 🙂

      Reply

  • Ilona
    January 12, 2015

    Hi, Natasha, I really loved your blog and definetely will try some of your ideas. This orange chicken is number one in my list). I am also a food blogger who lives in Ukraine so I always enjoy seeing so beautiful blogs like yours!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      January 12, 2015

      Thank you so much Ilona, your blog looks wonderful. We definitely have the same taste in food, I’m looking forward to exploring your site :).

      Reply

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