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.
Desi – I don’t think this meal would fare well frozen. I, for one, haven’t tried it, but I suppose if anyone else has they can chime in with their results.
Can this recipe be frozen? Any recommendations on the methodology? It looks so good, I want to double/triple the recipe and have it on hand.
The hubby and I LOVE LOVE LOVE this recipe! We make it about every other week…is that too often? =) Anyway, we love it so much we decided we would try and make it in the dutch ovens while camping. We doubled the recipe and add pineapple (with a little juice) and green peppers. The results: AWESOME! The only bad part was everyone loved it SOOOO much there wasn’t any left for seconds, everyone was disappointed =) Guess we’ll have to quadriple it next time! Such an AWESOME recipe!
Lets be fair you dont exactly need me to comment and sing this recipes praises as i think thats been proven already! But made this tonight and it was utterly wonderful, was worried about the vinegar smell that caused me to have a mini sneezing fit (if anyone else experiences this and is worried, have no fear! its fine!), but all turned out fabulously and im ashamed to admit it was devoured between just the 2 of us
Thank you very much indeed 🙂 x
so darn yummy! next to the fabulous orange chicken, this is our new favorite!
thanks for sharing the recipe!
Once again, a winner of a recipe from Melskitchencafe! I am 3 for 3 for this site, and I highly doubt if I’ll ever bother with any other recipe sites. Fairly simple, well-directed, and without processed food – what more can you ask for?
My husband, who hates everything I cook, came in the door tonight and made a *gross* face and said “what are you cooking?” (I think he smelled the vinegar, which I admit even made my eyes tear up a little when I’d open the oven to turn the chicken). Once it was on the plate, however, he proceeded to eat the entire baking dish of chicken. This will be an often requested recipe, I’m sure. Thank you, Mel!!!!
OMG!!!!!!! this ia an amazing recipe!! my family really loved it. thank-you for sharing!!!
I made this today when I all had written on my menu was “chicken”. I am SO glad I did! This was amazing!!!! I have to save some for my hubby who is working late tonight and I don’t want to! LOL
Thanks for a keeper of a recipe!!!!
I love this recipe. I think I’ve made it at least every other week since I discovered it. I’ve also made the sauce separately and served it with egg rolls and cream cheese wontons (and deep fried chicken of course). That turned out excellent as well. Thanks for such a great recipe!!
This is a great recipe; I saute red peppers and onions in the oil after the chicken is cooked and just then pour the sauce in, then add the chicken back into the skillet; you don’t even need to bake the whole thing in the oven for it to be yummy.
I found this on tastespotting and let me tell you, it was amazing! I was concerned it was going to be too vinegary because it smelled liked vinegar when it was cooking, but it was not at all. The only thing I might do differently next time is perhaps use less sugar, as it was possibly just a touch too sweet. Maybe 1/2 cup sugar? I don’t want to mess with it too much though because it really was great.
I tried this for dinner the other night. I have celiac and was SO excited to find a gluten free recipe for one of my favorite foods! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! It was SO yummy and my hubby loved it, said it was the best sweet and sour chicken he has ever had. I’ll have to agree. I’m excited to make this recipe again and again and again! Next time though, I’m going to double the recipe for the sauce =) SO YUMMY!
I made this Friday. My four-year-old loved it. I added green bell pepper which was great. I doubled the sauce but would not next time. The sauce is very powerful and a little goes a long way. We don’t eat much fried food but this was good for a change. I liked knowing what was going into our Chinese food. I will make this again but play around with the sauce a little my husband and I both thought it wasn’t quite. I little too ketchupy or something. It did look just like the real thing. 🙂
I was referred to you by a friend and this is the first recipe of yours I’ve tried. After my family and I scarfed the entire pan of chicken down, I went straight to all my contacts and referred them here as well. You just got a whole new legion of fans. And it’s well deserved! I bow to you 🙂
I made this last night and it was a definite hit! My husband, who doesn’t really like chicken, LOVED it! We will definitely be having this again and again! I also made your garlic knots for valentines day and they quickly became my “go-to” for rolls!!!!! Thanks! Love your website!
I decided to give my parents the night off last night and cook dinner for them, and thought this would be the perfect meal. Boy was I right, we all loved it! Even my siblings, and they are some picky eaters! I’m absolutely addicted to your wonderful website and my family seems to be pretty happy I found it too 🙂
My family teases me about all of the “blog food” meals I’ve been making lately. There have been quite a few lackluster meals. So, it was with low expectations that my family sat down to dinner. Everyone enjoyed it! I doubled the sauce and may experiment with adding a bit more soy or maybe hoisin sauce. Thanks for a great simple recipe I could make with ingredients already onhand.
Ok, this was absolutely perfect! My 12 year old, who says he hates chicken AND chinese food had thirds! Seriously wonderful. My husband said it reminded him of a restaurant he use to go to as a child. Thanks again…fabulous recipe!
Wow. This is the second recipe I’ve made from your “The Best Recipe” list. My family scarfed this down. This was so delicious and easy and I had all the ingredients! It’s super easy. Thanks for a champion recipe and I look forward to trying more of your recipes.
Jenna – so glad you loved this “best” recipe. Thanks for letting me know!
this was very good,but next time will use less surgar,husband loved it!!!!
Thanks, Rita!
When tonight’s dinner arrangements fell through last minute, I was scrambling to figure out what to make with what I had on hand. I have had this recipe bookmarked for a long time, because I love sweet and sour, however, my husband does not. He recently tried some of mine at a Chinese restaurant, though, and said it was okay. I decided tonight was the night and if he didn’t like it , he could have peanut butter and jelly.
As we were eating, he asked me what I thought. I said, “It’s pretty darn good!” He said, “Yeah, this needs to be put on the menu.” That confused my 6 year old who thought we were going to have the Chinese restaurant put it on their menu. My husband proceeded to tell me several more times how good it was. Thank you for this recipe!
I’ll share how I adapted the recipe slightly. I ran out of vinegar, so I made up the rest with pineapple juice. Then just before the chicken was done, I stir-fried some green and red peppers and carrots. When they were crisp-tender, I threw in some pineapple chunks and a bit of sauce and cooked another minute or so. Then I tossed the veggies with the chicken before serving. No need for any side dishes. It was fabulous!
Tiffany – great comment! Thanks for checking in on this recipe. I’m glad that your husband revised his sweet-and-sour thinking and liked this version! That’s quite a compliment to you and I love your variations. Thank you!
Oh my!!!! The sweet and sour chicken is “to die for.” I made it tonight and will make it again very soon. Thank you!
Thanks, Stephanie!
Okay, I am left to wonder what I did wrong, because everyone LOVES this dish, and it just had such a vinegar taste and smell to my family. Like overpowering-burn my nostrils smell. All night long.
And your recipes NEVER fail me…so I’m left to wonder what I did. Any thoughts?
I let it cook for a good hour, and let the extra sauce simmer for 20 minutes. I’m wondering if I measured wrong? Who knows. But because of the rave reviews I want to try one more time. 🙂
hayley – I’m so bummed you didn’t love this recipe! You know, it does have a pretty strong vinegar taste so chances are you DID make it right but might not prefer the strong vinegar taste. I know that when I make it and open the oven to stir every 15 minutes, I’m assaulted by a wave of burning vinegar but after the hour of baking it simmers down to silky, sweet and sour perfection. I’m sorry you didn’t love it!
Melanie–Thanks for sharing a great recipe! I made this for dinner last night and it was VERY well received. My 10 year old who isn’t usually much of a meat-eater was super excited to try this and took a large serving. We all really enjoyed it and I’m sure that we’ll be having it again soon. I wonder, have you make it with boneless skineless thighs before? Do you use breasts exclusively because they’re more lean? I was thinking about it when I fished my bag of breasts out of the freezer and had to move the thighs aside to get to it, so I thought I’d ask!
Renee – I’m happy you liked this! I’ve never used chicken thighs before but imagine they would work great. I like the leaner chicken breast but if you have chicken thighs waiting to be used, I bet they would work just fine!
amazing!!! Big hit with all 3 of my picky eater kids. Husband loved it, I loved it. Its going to be made again.
Thanks!
Thanks, Melanie!
So…. i’m making a variation of this recipe as I type (only has 1 15-minute turn left!) and it looks just AMAZING! I made a few changes for calorie counts (less oil, splenda instead of sugar, less cornstarch and only an egg) – but it STILL looks amazing! Can’t wait to try it – thank you for sharing so many great recipes! Every one of yours i’ve tried has been awesome! (we had your chili for dinner last night…. wow!)
fittingbackin – I saw your post on the chili and am thrilled you loved it (that white chili is one of my favorites!). I hope you liked this chicken – your healthified changes always make me proud!
Thanks for the recipe! It’s SOOOO YUMMY!!
Would this sauce work for an orange chicken?
Thanks again!
SO GOOD! I made this week. I absolutely loved it and and so did my very picky boyfriend! He was super skeptical (as always) when he read the recipe but now he keeps telling everybody about it!
Thanks, Ellie! I’m so glad your picky-eater boyfriend loved this…that’s a success!
OH MY STINK!!! This was DELICIOUS!!!
Thank you so much! Quick question–can this same sauce be used to make orange chicken?
Thanks again!
Marcela – I’ve never tried this sauce with orange chicken because it has a different flavor than I like in my orange chicken but it’s always worth a try. I’m glad you liked it so much!
Yummy! Need I say more! I made this for supper tonight and got rave reviews from the fam!! We loved it. I served it with a Rice Pilaf and Stirfried Veggies. This is definately the Best!
Tammy – love your sides to this meal and I’m glad it was such a hit!
Becca – glad you and your family loved this one, too!
Melanie, I made this recipe for my family a few weeks ago and they LOVED it! I can’t wait to make it again, thank you so much!
I’ve had this recipe bookmarked for some time now and I finally made it last week. Oh. My. Goodness. WOW! So much better than take out. It’s great because I already had everything on hand! Love your site! Thanks for a fantastic recipe!
Kathleen – thanks for checking in to let me know you liked this!
I am making this for dinner tonight. I have been wanting to make it for a long time and haven’t gotten around to it. It looks/sounds delicious… can’t wait!
Yum! Loved this. I love that I can make this at home and won’t have to go for take-out.
Just came across your blog and Love it! Made this for dinner tonight and it was a HUGE hit. This will be a definitely be something I make a lot from now on–thanks!
Thanks, Kim! I’m glad the first recipe you tried turned out so well!
This is amazing! We all loved it and gobbled it up. It was so easy to make and it tasted just like the sweet and sour chicken from Chinese restaurants, except maybe better! Thank you Mel!!!
Thanks, Kensi!
This is one of the best recipes I’ve come across on a food blog… amazing!
Thanks, Liz!
Looks so good! Love your site and recipes! What kind of vinegar do you use in this?
Hi Jennica – I usually use apple cider vinegar in this recipe.
I might have already commented on this to say it’s one of the best recipes I’ve seen in years. But I wanted to add that I use half the amount of sugar the recipe calls for with delicious results. Just in case anyone was wondering about using less sugar.
Christina – thanks for the tip on less sugar!
I made this last night and it was WONDERFUL! My husband loved it and it’s definitely being put into heavy rotation at our house!
Thanks, Amy!
This was wonderful! I decided to make it, but I was somewhat skeptical because I’ve made it before and it really wasn’t that good. But YOUR recipe is just so delicious. I had my husband run by and picked up the fried rice from the restaurant. My kids said this chicken was far better than the takeout we normally get. I think the cornstarch instead of flour makes a big difference. Also…the sauce is great.
Cindy – I’m glad another attempt at sweet and sour worked out well for you! Thanks for letting me know.
I heard about this recipe the other day and had to make it that night! This was great!! I loved the sauce cooked down on the stove, so similar to the take-out sauce. I added some bell peppers, pineapples and onion to ours the last 20 minutes of baking. Mr. loved it, so it’s a keeper and is being shared (and linked back) on my blog. =)
Rachelle – I love that idea of adding pineapple and bell peppers to the mix. I’m glad you liked it!
oh my goodness, these were so good! i was so proud of myself for making something that tasted like food from the chinese restuarant! i just don’t think i really expected these to turn out so fabulous but they sure did! thanks for the wonderful recipe!
Erica – glad you liked this meal, thanks for letting me know!
Made it tonight-Kids Loved it!! Thanks!
Thanks, Liz. I’m assuming you figured out the time the chicken cooks and I’m glad you and the kids liked it!
How long does the chicken cook?
YAY yet another winner of a recipe!! I made this tonight and everyone loved it. Thank you soooo much:)
Thanks, Sonya!
Oh, wow, this was great. My toddler and baby ate it! Hooray! I added those Chinese noodles, green onions, and pineapple wedges to my bowl, thanks again. Off to try another recipe of yours:)
Erin – glad this was such a hit with your kids! I love your additions of noodles…yum!
Thanks for your reply! It is a great recipe and I will make it the same way next time. I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t doing something wrong.
Oh. I made this. Oh. SO. GOOD. We all loved it!! It was easy and I can’t wait to make it again!
Thanks, Sara – glad it was a hit!
I was just wondering if the coating is supposed to be crispy after baking. I made it exactly as written, and it was fabulous. However, the coating came out soft, so I was wondering if I did something wrong. I baked it in a 13 x 9-inch Pyrex dish. Maybe if I’d used a different kind of pan?
Veronica – I would say the coating doesn’t stay overly crisp. When I make it, the chicken and coating soaks up some of the sauce and the coating softens a bit. it shouldn’t be soggy, by any means, but it definitely isn’t crunchy and crispy. I use a glass 9X13-inch pyrex dish, too. One way to combat this would be to bake the chicken without the sauce and thicken the sauce on the stove and pour the sauce over the chicken while serving it. The chicken probably won’t be as flavorful with the sauce flavor but it would keep the coating a bit less soft (or you could just fry the chicken until completely cooked through in the first step and serve it alongside the sauce).