Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken
Easily the most popular recipe on my blog, this baked sweet and sour chicken is a miracle of a dish. Baked, not fried, it has been a family favorite for over a decade!
Invented on a college budget almost 20 years ago, this baked sweet and sour chicken is the most popular recipe on my blog. And even better, it still remains one of our family favorites.
You may have seen this recipe floating around the internet; it’s everywhere! And for good reason. It’s crazy delicious.
I’m happy (and yes, a little proud) to acknowledge that the delectable sweet and sour chicken recipe originated here (posted way back in 2008, it was one of the first recipes I ever shared on my blog!).
With over 800 comments, 50+ 5-star reviews, and almost half a million pins/shares, that quick glance will tell you there is something special about this recipe.
How to Make Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken
The chicken for this recipe is flash-fried in a little bit of oil before going into a pan and into the oven to be baked fully.
There’s a good reason for this process:
- It gives a delicious browned “crust” on the chicken pieces
- The sweet and sour sauce is poured onto the par-baked chicken and everything bakes together in the oven – this fully cooks the chicken AND thickens and develops the flavors of the sauce
I have streamlined the chicken coating-and-cooking process to make it ultra-simple.
First, place the chicken pieces in a ziploc-style bag and toss with a bit of salt and pepper.
Second, add the cornstarch, seal the bag, and shake until the chicken pieces are evenly coated.
It might seem strange to coat the chicken pieces in cornstarch before dipping in egg, but it’s the preferred method here, and it works – I promise!
Dip the cornstarch-coated chicken pieces into the egg mixture.
Instead of doing this one little piece at a time, I dump several pieces of chicken in at once, toss around with a fork until the egg mixture fully coats the chicken and then replenish with more chicken as they go into the hot pan.
A Key to Making Sweet and Sour Chicken
Remember that the chicken pieces are just getting a quick minute in the hot pan so they are golden on the outside.
You don’t need very much oil, but you DO need to make sure the pan is hot and rippling before adding the chicken.
Here are a few things that will help:
- Use a nonstick pan – this means you can use less oil and still get beautifully golden chicken pieces.
- Heat the oil in the pan until it is hot enough that the chicken sizzles immediately when added to the pan.
- Cook for just a few seconds on each side until the “crust” is golden brown – you don’t want to cook the chicken completely in this step!
Sweet and Sour Sauce
The sauce for this baked sweet and sour chicken consists of:
- sugar
- ketchup
- vinegar
- soy sauce
- garlic powder
There is just the right amount of sauce for the breaded chicken pieces to bake in without becoming saturated and soggy. As the sauce simmers in the oven with the chicken, it thickens and coats the chicken with a caramelized sweet and sour glaze.
If you like extra sauce, simply whisk together another batch of sauce and simmer it on the stovetop for 8 to 10 minutes to serve alongside the baked sweet and chicken.
A Very Popular Recipe
There are over 500 5-star reviews for this amazing recipe; I’ll highlight just a few:
Stephanie: Amazing! My whole family loved this recipe! Tasted like it was from a restaurant and it was SO easy to make! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Erin: First time poster – this was FANTASTIC. I doubled the sauce, threw in a can of pineapple chunks and used rice vinegar. Thank you – this is going in the rotation. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Kimberly: I was worried about the one hour cooking time drying out the chicken but every bite was tender. Will make again. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Vicki: Oh my- officially a fav in our house. It’s been requested 3 times in as many weeks. I add peppers and onion to mine over rice. So good! Thanks for sharing it!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Below is a list of the most frequently asked questions for this recipe – and if you scroll through the comments, you can see many, many variations!
Sweet and Sour FAQ:
Many people have commented that they have reduced the sugar to 1/2 cup and I’ve done the same (if not more) over the years, too.
Yes. Vinegar, while baking, gives off a strong aroma, but the strong aroma/taste bakes off during the recommended time in the recipe leaving a delicious sweet and sour taste.
That’s up to you. Many people in the comments have adapted the recipe ingredients; however, other than sometimes reducing the sugar to 1/2 cup and using a different type of vinegar (see the question below), I make the recipe as written and can’t vouch for results for other adaptations. I have made this sweet and sour chicken recipe at least 50 times (probably more) and even though the vinegar seems overpowering, the recipe works. Promise. If you are determined to adapt the vinegar, several others have used half vinegar and half pineapple juice for a milder taste (but you’ll lose a bit of the sweet and sour punch).
Why yes! I often substitute rice vinegar which has a slightly milder/sweeter taste and many others in the comments have substituted the same or even used white vinegar. Feel free to experiment.
All-purpose flour will not give the same light coating as the cornstarch. The only decent substitute I’ve found is tapioca flour/starch. Works great!
I encourage you to make the recipe as written. Like I said above, I’ve made this recipe many times and the hour baking time is not a typo. Keep in mind that you don’t want to cook the chicken through while browning it. That step should be a quick flash in the pan in hot oil in order to give the chicken a crispy outer layer, but the pieces should still be raw in the center. Many have commented that they have cut the baking time down to 30 minutes. You can try that; the sauce won’t thicken as much as if baking for the full hour.
I’m not often right, but in the case of cornstarch and egg, I am. The chicken is coated with cornstarch and then dipped in egg.
I don’t see why not! Many commenters have tried that with good results.
I prefer the Heinz Natural brand (without HCFS) but when I can’t find it, I go with regular Heinz.
What to Serve With This
- Baked Brown Rice
- Steamed Broccoli
- Creamy 5-Cup Fruit Salad or fresh, seasonal fruit
Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken
Ingredients
Chicken:
- 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds)
- Salt and pepper
- 1 cup cornstarch
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- ¼ cup canola, vegetable or coconut oil
Sauce:
- ½ to ¾ cup granulated sugar, depending on how sweet you want the sauce
- 4 tablespoons ketchup
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar (see note)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Cut the chicken breasts into 1-inch or slightly larger pieces. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Place the cornstarch in a gallon-sized ziploc bag. Put the chicken into the bag with the cornstarch and seal, tossing to coat the chicken.
- Whisk the eggs together in a shallow pie plate. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat until very hot and rippling. Dip the cornstarch-coated chicken pieces in the egg and place them carefully in a single layer in the hot skillet.
- Cook for 20-30 seconds on each side until the crust is golden but the chicken is not all the way cooked through (this is where it’s really important to have a hot skillet/oil). Place the chicken pieces in a single layer in a 9X13-inch baking dish and repeat with the remaining chicken pieces.
- Mix the sauce ingredients together in a medium bowl and pour over the chicken. Bake for one hour, turning the chicken once or twice while cooking to coat evenly with sauce. Serve over hot, steamed rice.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: Mel’s Kitchen Cafe original recipe
Recipe originally published July 2008; updated Sept 2018 with new pictures, recipe notes, etc.
awesome recipe i love it
I was worried about the one hour cooking time drying out the chicken but every bite was tender. Will make again but will double sauce.
Loved this recipe! As someone who is gluten free, I often crave a breaded chicken! I swapped out the cornstarch for arrow root powder and use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce. I’ll definitely be making this again!
I’ve been making this for some time, but I use my extra large cast iron skillet. I make the chicken, take it out of the skillet, wipe out the skillet, and stick it back in the oven. One less dish to clean and it ALWAYS turns out perfectly. Sometimes I add pepper, onion, and/or pineapple; it just depends on what I have on hand. We absolutely love it and it is an oft requested meal from my 16-year-old.
This is a great recipe!!! Can I freeze the chicken after frying, and add sauce and cook in the oven at a later time??
Thank you
I haven’t tried that, but you probably could!
So Im at work and Im improvised really hard.. Made it completely in a skillet, no baking, no measurements, mostly just looked at the ingredients and winged it. Added peppers and onions. Clients loved it, I loved it. 100% making this again.
Simple to make and very tasty. I have a Pintrest board for my husband’s favorites and he said to please add this recipe to it. Thank you.
Oh my- officially a fav in our house. It’s been requested 3 times in as many weeks. I add peppers and onion to mine over rice. So good! Thanks for sharing it!!
This was amazing! Thank you Mel.
I made this recipe as suggested, used rice wine vinegar and I didn’t have ketchup so I used chili sauce and sauteed red, green pepper and pineapple, added to chicken after it cooked and it was just like take out only much better! Next time I will make the extra sauce as well, it’s delicious. When I can finally see my grandchildren again they are going to LOVE this too.
I double breaded the chicken. We will see how it turns out. Hopefully more crispy! Love making this, but it takes FOREVER!
Love the recipe, better than Chinese restaurant, absolutely amazing. It does take a long time, so I’ve been making a lazy version of it, I just fry chopped up pieces of chicken breast in some olive oil, sprinkle a little flour over it, pour the sauce over it and let it simmer in the pan on the stove for 20-30 minutes. Tastes amazing over rice, we can’t get enough. Hope the lazy way helps someone!
I have an egg allergy so what can I use as replacement? Thanks
I’m not sure this recipe would work quite as well without the eggs – it might be better to find a sweet and sour recipe that’s been tested without eggs.
Late reply, but my son has an egg allergy and I just use corn starch and a little salt and pepper. I think it turns out the same. I’ve had it both ways. 🙂
This is the best “better than takeout” recipe I have ever tried. Thank you for being a staple in our home, Mel. Without fail, I make at least 3 of your recipes every week. Haha! You are my go-to when meal planning. Thank you for all you do!!
Absolutely Yummy, so good we had to make it again.
This was delicious!!! Added a few things later since I had no rice. Package of precooked veggies and onions and sweet peppers with lomein noodles in the end. I also increased temperature.
I made this tonight and, in a word, this is so good. I have made sweet and sour chicken for years but the recipe I was using becam boring and stale. I looked for a new one and this is it. My kids asked why I haven’t made this before. I wish I found this sooner, it would have made thinking about what to make for dinner a lot easier. Thank you.
It’s a bit fussy. The breading and frying takes some finesse. I’m not good at it and end up with a huge mess and grease burns. But it’s fun to make your own take out. And I think with some practice I could get better.
Wish you’d supply nutrition info. I’m tracking my recipes/meals and it very helpful for me to have that info for my meal planning. Nice recipe – look forward to trying it.
Hi Wendy, I’m in the process of adding nutrition info to all my recipes. Should be showing up on the archived recipes shortly!
I can’t use cornstarch and I notice that you mention tapioca/flour. What about arrowroot and if so is that a 1 to 1 ratio? We can’t wait to make this!!
I haven’t used arrowroot, but it’s worth a try. Yes, I think it would be the same amount as using cornstarch.
It’s Father’s Day again and guess what I’m making? 🙂 His favorite recipe, hands down. Some tips I’ve picked up after making this twice a year for the past few years:
1. If you are making 2 pounds or more of chicken, do the corn starch into batches. You get a better coating.
2. When you are coating the chicken in corn starch and then in egg, use separate utensils to transfer from the corn starch to the egg, to the pan. It prevents all of the gunk from sticking to your tongs or forks. I worked with two sets of tongs and two forks.
3. You may need to add an additional egg half way through if the egg batter starts to get clumpy.
4. We prefer mostly rice vinegar in the sauce and 1/2 cup of sugar is perfect. Don’t make my mistake and use the unrefined organic cane sugar (has a slight brown color to it), just go with the good old white granulated.
Needless to say, this is a family favorite and way better than take out. Thank you Mel!
Hi Mel!
Quick Q, please.
Would it be okay to bake in a 9×13″ cake pan?
How should I adjust oven temperature, please?
Many thanks
By cake pan, do you mean an aluminum/metal pan? That’s a great question – but I’m not entirely sure how it would work since I’ve always used a glass or ceramic pan. I *think* it should work fine without altering the recipe.
Making this again today (family favourite) and just seen I’ve forgotten to report back! Yes, it works fine in a metal cake pan (used Wilton) – thank you! 🙂
This is a regular for my family dinners. I have also cooked and used as meal prep for lunch for my work week and it is so good! I sub coconut aminos rather than soy. I also cut the cornstarch in half and it was just the perfect amount. I add rice and steamed broccoli for dinners and it is always a hit!
You can also use arrowroot powder, instead of cornstarch.
Made this for the first time today. Got distracted and forgot the egg dip. Didn’t even think about it until after dinner. Anyway, it got 2 thumbs up. I made the extra sauce, but it tastes stronger than the sauce with the chicken. I guess it is the corn starch and cooking time that mellows it somewhat. Nonetheless, it was good and I will make it again. I added yellow and red peppers; next time I will add half way through when I stir.
I cut the sugar between 1/3 and 1/2 cup; my partner is diabetic. I also substitute crushed garlic cloves for the garlic salt – helps reduce the sodium in my recipe and we love fresh garlic in our cooking. Otherwise, this recipe has been come a staple in our home and in others’ homes where I’ve shared it out.
What are the nutrition facts for this recipe?
I’ve made this recipe so many times, it’s by far the best one. I started adding a little bit of ground ginger to the sauce, too. Tonight, I’m using cubed pork sirloin, instead of chicken, and I know it’ll be fantastic. Thanks for this recipe!
I added sriracha for a little heat.
Made this tonight – still as delicious as the first time I made it 5 years ago. We drizzled a healthy amount of Siracha when it came out of the oven. Served over cauli rice and steamed broccoli. Thanks again, Mel!
I wasn’t ready for the oil explosions. It did taste good and my husband loved it but I’m going to be cleaning my kitchen tomorrow. I would have loved that warning.
I would love some frying tips. If I got it hot enough to brown quickly, it was splashing everywhere.
Made this for the first time last night and it was amazing!! Everyone loves it!! That never happens!! Thank you!!
Hi, Have your ever used this recipe to make sweet and sour pork?
Thanks
Yes, it’s delicious!
Delicious! Unfortunately, I had only half the required amount of apple cider vinegar so I used that and half fig balsamic vinegar, and cut the sugar in half. It was perfect! Not too sweet, not too acidic. The cooking time for 3 breasts was perfect and with some rice and steamed veggies on the side, it’s 4 meals for me. Thanks! Another keeper!
Sadly, it was supposed to be a second meal for my husband and I as well, Diane! But sneaky fingers in the fridge a few times post dinner and now there’s hardly enough for tomorrow’s lunch! Oh, yum.
So so. I still like the authentic Chinese-style sweet and sour chicken. I followed instructions as specified, but resulting taste not really comparable to how a Chinese restaurant makes it. Will not try again.
Really good recipe, not too sweet on the sauce which we like! Easy too!
I love this recipe! I have made it multiple times and my kiddo requests it allll the time! I double the sauce lower the sugar and use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce. I don’t even order takeout anymore since finding this recipe!!!!
Thanks sooo much. I just did it..I added green, yellow, red & orange pepper, fresh pineapple ..sesame seeds & green onions on top..with fried rice. I used a substitute for the soy..(I’m allergic to soy) .
I wished I can send you the picture ☺️
This was so good! I prepared everything during the baby’s nap and threw it in the oven for an hour and by the time my husband got home and the baby was awake, dinner was ready! My husband even said it tasted like what you would get at a Chinese restaurant and I totally agree.
Way better than takeout! My 3 year old eats it and he eats NOTHING. Thank you, Mel!
This is such a tasty meal! I had a baby last week and before the baby came I made a bunch of our families favorite recipes from this website and froze them. We are BIG fans of you, Mel! 🙂
I tripled this recipe two months ago. I followed the recipe as follows. However, after frying the chicken part way I froze it. I also made the sauce and put it into a ziplock bag and froze it as well. It was the perfect baby meal! An hour before dinner I pulled out the gallon sized ziplock bag with everything in it, sprayed a 13X9 pan with nonstick spray, dumped in the chicken, ran the bag with the sauce in it under some hot water, and poured it over the chicken. Then I threw some rice in my rice cooker! I let the chicken cook in my oven at 325 for an hour. It was so simple!
It came out perfectly!! My husband was so happy to finally get to eat some of his favorite meals after a week of people bringing us meals and I was happy to easily make him yummy food while surviving the newborn and toddler. Huge thanks to Mel for this awesome recipe!! I want to try doing this again but with your orange chicken sauce. 🙂
I prefer chicken tenderloins over the breast, will the bake time still be the same?
I think tenderloins will cook much faster
This has been one of our family favorites for a long time! Recently though, I’ve chosen to eat vegan. But we all still love and missed this recipe, so I decided to be brave and try subbing in some tofu (extra firm) in place of the chicken…and it was so DELICIOUS! The key to eating yummy tofu is to flavor it before pan frying. I used two 16 oz blocks (family of 6), pressed and torn into pieces, 2 TBS coconut aminos (or soy sauce), 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp ground black pepper, and 1/3 cup cornstarch. Toss it all in a zip loc bag to coat, then pan fry in oil. The only other ingredient I didn’t use in the recipe was the eggs. I also cooked it at 350 for close to 30 minutes…just enough to get the sauce bubbly. I am so happy to eat one of my favorite recipes again!!
Can I do this recipe without frying the chicken first? Frying isn’t good for me. How would I do it without frying?
You may want to try a different recipe – this one relies on the breading and pan frying (although if you scroll quickly through the comments, I believe others have skipped the breading and just used the sauce). I haven’t tried that but you could experiment. Good luck!
My family loves this recipe. Is it possible to get nutritional information
Than you!
You can put ingredients in My
Fitness Pal to get the nutritional info.
I am excited to try this!
Hi! I have 3 teenage boys and a daughter that can almost rival them in eating. Could I double this recipe? Should I put it in a sheet pan instead? What do you think? Thank you in advance! I LOVE your blog!
Yes, you can definitely double! When I do, I use two 9X13-inch pans but a sheet pan might work as long as the sauce doesn’t spill over into the oven.
This recipe has become a staple in our home. I double the sauce and add a sliced onion and green pepper. It’s always a hit!
Can I substitute coconut flour instead of the corn starch?
I haven’t tried that but you could experiment!
Love this recipe and even make it in advance and freeze it after frying an then after fully defrosting crisp it in a hot oven and prepare the sauce. The sauce is so nice I usually double the ingredients for it. My chicken refusing 4 year old even eats this so it’s a massive hit in our house!
So I have been craving sweet and sour chicken ALL DAY and decided to check the internet for a recipe as I have no clue how to cook these fancy things lol….I came across your recipe and decided why. I was a bit skeptic at first when I saw the amount of vinegar to use but I put my doubts aside and went ahead with it. I always have chicken seasoned in the refrigerator so I went ahead and got a parcel of de-boned chicken thighs with no skin. I followed all the steps up until the sauce where I added my own little flair to it. I added some scotch bonnet infused honey to my mix and let me tell you it came out AMAZING!!!!!!!! Just like some of the other skeptics of this recipe I was scared for the warf of vinegar smell when you open the open but let me tell you this….I Love this recipe, it is easy to make and the instructions were perfect. Thanks a million. I will definitely be looking at your other recipes to see what I can make.