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.
This was SO GOOD! I doubled the recipe, but cooked it in a 9×13 pan. I should have spread it out on a cookie sheet so it could have stayed a bit crispier, though. My husband said it was “the best sweet and sour chicken he’s ever had”.
TraciW – so glad you and your husband liked this! Thanks for letting me know.
so delicious, Melanie! we all loved it! i will definitely be making this again. thanks for another winner~
Thanks, Jeanette!
Melanie, we loved loved loved this! I’ve had it on the “to make” list and finally did tonight. My hubby said it was better than take out, and I agree! I just can’t get enough of your recipes, because every single one has been beyond delicious! Thank you!
Hey Ashley – so fun to hear from you and I’m happy that you liked this meal! Thanks so much for your sweet comment!
I cook for 5 adults and three kids daily, it is very rare to find something everyone likes. However I made this recipe tonight and all I heard was, “So when are you going to make that again?” Thanks for the recipe!!
Shannon – you are amazing to cook for all those people every day! I’m glad this meal pleased everyone…great news!
I made the sweet and sour chicken last night with jasmine rice and broccoli and it was delicious!!! My 8 year old said that this is one of her favorites – yay!!!
Thanks, Brenda – glad this meal came through for you!
This was great. I was a little worried that there would be scrambled eggs in my chicken, but there weren’t. My mom made a recipe very similar to this that she got from a local restaurant. So great.
Sally – thanks for your comment! I’m glad this worked out despite your initial reticence.
okay, this may be my favourite recipe YET!!!!!!!!! absolutely, unbelievably, undeniably DELICIOUS!!!!!!!!!
Yay, Mia! So glad you liked this one, too!
ACK!! Everytime I stumble across another ‘must try’ recipe on your blog, I panic….what else am I missing!!? OH the stress!!!!!!
I am a HUGE fan of all chinese food Ah heck, who am a I kidding, I’m a huge fan of all things edible. I finally found an AMAZING recipe for ginger beef the other night, so I am soooo excited to be able to try this out and add it to my ‘chinese food’ recipes. (we have NO good chinese food restaurants in this entire city!) *sigh*
Thanks Mel, can NOT wait to try this out!!!!!! YUMMMMMY!!!! I know it will be awesome cuz thus far, every single recipe I’ve tried (what am I at now, 100?!!) {{lol}} has been nothing short of fabulous.
Thanks for your quick response. I made your honey lime enchiladas tonight for the second time. Soooo Yummy. I picked up my 14 year old from school and she asked what was for dinner. She was so excited it was the enchiladas. Thanks again for sharing your great recipes.
Natalie – glad you liked the enchiladas! It’s always a plus when the kiddos are happy BEFORE dinner (instead of dreading what’s on the menu).
Melanie-
What kind of vinegar do you use? I am excited to make these. 🙂 Yours is my favorite blog for RECIPES!
Thanks always for your time.
Natalie
Hi Natalie – I use apple cider vinegar when I make this. Hope you like it!
Oh yes, the results were definitely worth it. Even my pickiest eater asked for seconds. The whole family enjoyed it!
I’m relieved, Alicia! Thanks for checking back in to let me know.
We’re trying this tonight. It’s in the oven right now. I was just wondering if there are any easier ways to coat the chicken besides piece by piece in the corn starch and then the egg. Has anyone every tried putting the cornstarch and chicken in a large zip lock baggie and shaking it around to coat it and then dipping it in egg? Just trying to save a little time and mess. Can’t wait to try it.
Hi Alicia – I’ve never tried the bag-and-shake method but it’s worth a try! In fact, I’m making it for a large dinner group in a few weeks and I may give that method a try. It definitely is one of the more time consuming meals I make but I hope you think the results are worth it!
I made this tonight, but I didn’t put it in the oven. I made the sauce and put it in a skillet on the stove top and boiled it with carrots and bell peppers until the sauce was thick and the veggies were tender. I used white rice, already cooked chicken (cubed) and then poured the sauce/veggies over the top. It was a huge hit. Thanks for all the great recipes. You are my number one stop when I’m trying to get some fresh ideas.
Sonya – your adaptations sound delicious! I’m so glad you liked it and your comment was so nice – thank you!
Delish! This is amazing! My husband said its better than the restaurant!
Elena – thank you!!
Just wondering if you ever used pork with this recipe? By the way I love your website. Thanks for saving my cooking and my husband thanks you as well.
Amber – thanks for your comment! You are so nice. I’ve never tried pork with this recipe but have thought about it many times (does that count?). I’m guessing it would sub just great for the chicken.
We had this tonight and it was GREAT!!! The chicken was so tender and flavorful…much better than s&s chicken from the chinese restaurant. This is the 1st recipe that I have cooked from your site and I can’t wait to try more. I spent lots of time browsing your blog as I prepared our menu for the month. Lots of your recipes are written on my calendar. Thx so much!
Shaunta – thanks for checking in to let me know you liked this meal! I appreciate your rave reviews and hope you have good luck with any other recipes you try!
Melanie C. – I’m on my way to check out those green beans – sounds like a perfect accompaniment to this dish. I’m so glad you liked it!
I made this for dinner tonight. it was delicious!! husband, 3 1/2 year old boy, MIL, and I all loved it!! I served it over basmati rice, and on the side I made ‘chinese buffet green beans’ from allrecipes.com. sprinkled sesame seeds over everything. chicken was very tender.
thanks for yet ANOTHER great recipe!!
This recipe was so good I decided to create a blog just to review it. Here is the link to my review with picture included. http://akdrip.blogspot.com/2010/04/sweet-and-sour-chicken.html
Felicia – I saw your post on this and am so glad that this has changed the way you think about Asian cooking!
Thank you for opening my eyes to how amazing home-made Chinese food can be. This is seriously the best sweet and sour chicken I've ever made myself. Thanks!
I just found your site and I have printed out a bunch of recipes to try! I love your site and your opinion of each recipe. I really don't like to try a new recipe unless I hear the results and know it's a good one. We had the sweet and sour chicken last night and oh my goodness…it was so so so good!! My husband LOVED it and said it was his new favorite and much better than any of those chinese places. He ate a ton of it! My girls loved it too and I loved it! It was a hit at my house! The sauce is so yummy and the chicken was perfect. Thanks for an awesome recipe! I can't wait to try your other ones!
Hi Liz, thanks for your comment! I'm so glad that you trusted this recipe enough to give it a go and that it was such a huge success. It is one of my husband's favorites! Thanks for letting me know!
Tannis – so glad this worked out. I do that all the time, too – trying out new recipes on guests…sometimes it doesn't work out so well so I'm glad this wasn't a disappointment!
Fantastic!! I made this for friends and was a little nervous being that I hadn’t tried it ahead of time but we were all impressed. The chicken was so tender and the flavors perfect!
MelanieL – this meal is a bit more work than others so I’m glad that your family loved it after you spent the time making it! Thanks for letting me know.
I made this last night. My entire family loved it! It took some coaxing to get my 3yo to try it but after he did, he wanted more. My only complaint is I wish I’d made more, there wasn’t a drop leftover!! Thanks for all the wonderful recipes you post on your blog:)
Anonymous – I get a lot of questions about the egg and cornstarch dipping order. I do it the way it is written in the recipe, even though it seems backwards, because I think it makes for a delightfully thin, crisp coating but I know others have switched the order and it has worked out just fine. Hope you liked the end result!
I just found your blog a few weeks ago and have since made a bunch of meals from it. Delicious! I am making this tonight and it smells SO good right now cooking in the oven. I do have a question though…in the instructions it says to dip in cornstarch, then egg…is that how you do it, or is it egg then cornstarch? Either way I’m sure it will be divine, but the coating will be different. Thanks for this recipe and all the other ones you have posted!!
You never seem to fail me. I had a craving for Orange Chicken tonight and couldn’t find any good recipe’s out there. Then it hit me – I remembered seeing one on your blog. So of course I printed it out and cant wait to try it tonight. My husband and son both love Orange Chicken. Looking forward to surprising them! I will let you know how it turns out!
Mmmmm….it was really good! I made it for two families tonight. A little work tripling the recipe, but definitely worth it!
Jenn, wow, that is a lot of work tripling this recipe. I hope the recipients loved it, too!
Not only is this recipe nice and simple, it is delicious too! My mother and I use this recipe and add pineapple slices, red & green bell peppers, and maraschino cherries into the baking dish before adding it to the oven. In fact, my boyfriend likes it so much, I have made it 2 years in a row on New Year’s Eve… tonight will make the 3rd year! Thanks so much for the great recipes!
Nicole – I love your additions. I never would have thought to add maraschino cherries. I always make Asian-inspired food on New Year’s too!
as you already know from my blog post, my husband and I both loved this recipe. It really does taste like it came from a restaurant! my mom is already planning on making it too. 🙂 next time I’m adding pineapple!
I am hooked on your blog…if I am not mistaken I got your blog info from my friend who got it from a friend who is your aunt or something…anyway, there will NEVER be another reason to go out again for this dish…I made it twice within a week…we love it…now I just have to find a beef and broccoli recipe!
Amy – thanks for commenting! I’m glad your friend of a friend of my Aunt Marilyn (at least that’s the aunt I’m guessing) passed on the blog. And I’m really glad you like this dish! Thanks for letting me know. By the way, here is a link to a fantastic broccoli beef recipe, if you are interested:
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/broccoli_beef/
Debbie – so glad you liked this! My husband is looking over my shoulder just salivating at the thought of this recipe. He loves it. Thanks for letting me know!
Thank you, Thank you for this recipe!!! My 7yo daughter has always loved “sticky chicken” but I never had a recipe to make it for her at home. We tried this last night for the first time and it was a HUGE hit for my 3 kiddos and hubby!! Each of them had 2nds…and I learned that next time I just might get to make a double batch =)
Melanie – I think that is a fabulous idea to make this a skillet meal, but I’ve never tried it. If you do, let me know! I’m really glad you and your husband liked it.
Yummo! I made this dish tonight and my husband declared it his new favorite meal! I was wondering if you’ve ever tried simmering this meal in a skillet rather than baking it? My old sweet & sour recipe does this and it makes one less dish to wash, but I didn’t want to mess with this recipe if you’ve tried this method and it didn’t work out! Thanks for ANOTHER great recipe! -Melanie
KimD – You are a good, good mom to let your 3-year old help you out with meals like this. Way to go! I’m so glad you like this recipe…thanks for taking the time to let me know.
Houston, TX – thanks for the comment and the tips you included for this meal. I’m glad you and your three teenagers (bless your heart!) liked it. Thanks for letting me know!
Very good recipe. I have twin 15 year old boys and a 13 year old daughter. They all loved it. In the middle of making it I just knew I would need more…..cut up an additional breast. Not a piece of chicken was left. So success. A couple of tips that might already be here somewhere. Please line your baking sheets with foil. It will save you so much time with all the baked sugar in the sauce. As opposed to pouring the sauce over the chicken on the baking sheet….dunk each piece with tongs in the sauce and then place on the sheet. One last tip……use two pair of tongs….one to coat in corn starch and move to egg and pan….a second to flip in pan.. A healthy tip to boot….use grapeseed oil to pan fry instead of canola oil…it is so much healthier for your family’s heart. 🙂 Thanks for the great recipe… Houston, Tx
I saw this recipe on Pioneer Woman’s Tasty Kitchen blog and have made it several times and shared it with my sister too. My 3 yr old likes to help me prepare the chicken and he loves it too – it IS better than take out!!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
The Coopers – I hope you like the manicotti and cinnamon rolls. I’m really glad you liked this sweet and sour chicken. I’ve said it a million times, but it’s true – it is definitely one of our family’s favorites!
Just tried this the other night and it was sooo yummy! Husband and son loved it too. Very easy to make and with defiently make again. This is the 1st recipe i have made from your blog and i look so forward to making more, next up baked manicotti and vanilla pudding cinnamon buns.
Thanks again!!
Kim – thanks for your comment! I’m so glad you and your husband liked this – it is a real treat around our house and one of my husband’s favorites.
This Was so yummy!!! My Husband and I kept saying this is really good, the whole time we were eating it!!! I love all your receipes!! Keep them coming!
Anonymous – unfortunately, I’ve never made any of the steps ahead of time, so I can’t vouch for if it will work ok to do that. I’m a bit afraid of the chicken is fried earlier and refrigerated, it might get a little soggy, but I’m not sure. Let me know if you try it!