Sweet Spicy Sticky Chicken
This sweet spicy sticky chicken is incredible! It has definite sweet and sour vibes with a bit of heat (which you can dial up or down). So yummy!
My family would like you to know this is the best thing I’ve made all year. In fact, they declared it even better than our beloved sweet and sour chicken, which is kind of earth shattering news, to be honest. It really is amazingly delicious!
The Sweet and Spicy Sauce
The sauce for this recipe calls for mostly every day pantry ingredients, save maybe one.
- broth
- vinegar
- ketchup
- granulated + brown sugar
- soy sauce
- chili garlic sauce
The chili garlic sauce is essential for the recipe. It adds depth and complexity which is essential for the flavors of the sauce. It also lends the “spice” factor to the sweet, spicy, sticky chicken.
As written, the sauce is mildly spicy. You can easily dial the chili garlic sauce up or down depending on how spicy you want the sauce.
Where to Buy Chili Garlic Sauce
Most well-stocked grocery stores will carry chili garlic sauce in the Asian foods aisle. You can also buy it from Asian food markets, if you have one near you. And it’s available on Amazon, as well.
I usually end up with the Huy Fong brand, because it seems to be the most common brand when I’m shopping for it.
The sauce needs to be simmered prior to being baked with the chicken. Why? Doing so, allows the sauce to thicken more quickly in the oven…which also means the chicken won’t over cook.
Easier Baked Chicken Tenders
In this crazy popular sweet and sour chicken recipe, the chicken pieces are dipped in cornstarch, egg, pan-fried and then added to the baking dish. It’s delicious.
But I wanted an easier method for this sweet spicy sticky chicken. So I came up with a new-and-improved-but-just-as-tasty-breading-and-cooking-system.
- Pat the chicken tenders dry and season lightly with salt and pepper
- Dredge the chicken lightly in flour (shake off excess)
- Place the chicken in buttered pan and bake for 10 minutes
- Pour simmered sauce over the top
- Bake for another 15 minutes
While the “breading” on the chicken is not as thick as in the sweet and sour chicken recipe, we actually love it this way (and it greatly minimizes the mess and prep time!). In fact, I will definitely be making the chicken portion of the sweet and sour chicken recipe like this from now on.
Sweet, Spicy, Sticky = The Most Delicious Chicken
The sauce will bubble and thicken while baking in the oven…and it continues to thicken as it cools slightly out of the oven.
The chicken is tender. The sauce is gloriously glaze-y. And the flavors are fantastic. Sweet, tangy, spicy, salty. All the things. YUM.
This has quickly become an all-time favorite for my family. Our family of seven can obliterate a shocking amount of this chicken. That might be due, in part, to the five teenagers (more or less) in the family, but still, A SHOCKING AMOUNT.
Please meet your new, must-make chicken dinner. I hope you love it as much as we do!
What to Serve With This
- Hot, cooked rice (or this lovely baked brown rice)
- Skillet Steamed Broccoli
- Pao de Queijo
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Sweet Spicy Sticky Chicken
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
- 1 ½ pounds chicken tenders
- Salt and pepper
- â…“ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup chicken broth
- ¼ cup white or apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup ketchup
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce
- Hot, cooked rice, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Place butter in glass 9X13-pan. Place in oven so the butter can melt. (Don't let it burn!) Remove from the oven when butter is melted. Alternately, you can melt the butter and spread in the pan (but where's the fun in that?).
- Pat the chicken tenders dry with paper towels. Season lightly on both sides with salt and pepper.
- Place the flour in a shallow dish. Dredge the chicken tenders in flour to coat. Shake off excess. Place the chicken in a single layer in the buttered pan.
- Bake for 10 minutes. It will bake longer in a following step. While the chicken bakes, make the sauce.
- In a medium saucepan, whisk together the broth, vinegar, ketchup, granulated sugar, brown sugar, soy sauce and chili garlic sauce. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
- Pour the sauce over the chicken and return to the oven to bake for 15 minutes until chicken is baked through and the sauce is bubbly and slightly thickened. The sauce will continue to thicken out of the oven as it cools.
- Serve the chicken and sauce over hot, cooked rice.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe (inspired by a recipe from my cousin-in-law Tami, by way of Aunt Marilyn – I adjusted just about everything including cooking method so it is baked, not fried, and adjusting ingredient quantities including decreasing the sugar significantly)
What a flavorful dish! This will be added to my regular meal rotation. Thanks!
Made this recipe for lunch today and it hit the ball completely outta the park! Â I will definitely add this to my regular rotation of meal recipes. The flavor was wonderful and the recipe was easy!Â
I purposely completely left out the white sugar and it was plenty sweet – I might even cut down the brown sugar if I make it again. This was great, easy to make and tasty! Thanks
Easy & yummy! 😋
We all liked this! I didn’t want to turn the oven on so I made a cooking change and used the sous vide for the chicken, briefly fried it on a hot pan afterwards, and drizzled the sauce over the top (also added a bit or cornstarch to thicken the sauce). Served with sticky rice, air fried carrots, and skillet broccoli/cauliflower. There wasn’t a morsel left!
This is SO good. I made it after my aunt mentioned that she made it and her family fought over the leftovers. My hubby wasn’t a fan… he said it was too sweet. But I could eat it every day for the rest of my life.
I also think this sauce would be phenomenal on salmon. That’s up next to try!
The best. We have made it weekly since it was published. This is the kind of recipe that you make for other people and they all ask for the recipe after. So good. Thanks Mel!!Â
I used siracha instead of the chili sauce; subbed 1 to 1 gluten free flour; sliced chicken breast instead of tenders. Everything turned out great!!! Family devoured and asked to make this weekly. Doubled for family of 6, perfect amount.
This was SO good and a one that I’ll definitely make again! I used about half of the chili garlic sauce and it was so flavorful…perfect amount of spice for my people! I served it with coconut rice, strawberries, and grilled broccoli.
I wasn’t giving the recipe my full attention and ended up spraying the pan with nonstick spray instead of melting butter in the baking dish. It still worked well, although I’m imagining we may have missed a little additional richness in the sauce. It was still awesome without the butter!
Delicious! We loved this recipe! SO much easier than the beloved sweet & sour chicken recipe. This will be added to the regular rotation.
Mel, I made this today for a small family gathering. My only mistake was that I didn’t double it — everyone loved it! Little kids said, “No way,” and when they saw the adults were eating their portions they quickly gave in and ate what was on their plates. I had made some sides, so no one went hungry. Dessert was your best chocolate cake, so we were fine. This will be a regular recipe for special meals. Thanks so much.
Super tasty! Loved the simplicity of the process but equal deliciousness to the sweet and sour chicken. All five loved it. Thanks, Mel!
I’ve made your old recipe of this and it was so good, but definitely a longer process. Â This was so easy and tasted incredible!! Â We all loved the recipe and will for sure be making it on repeat!
Super yummy and easy to put together. I omitted the chili garlic because, toddlers. If i were to make again, I’d prob make a little extra sauce. Paired with rice, fruit and zucchini. Thanks for the new recipe.Â
Excellent! 10 stars for yumminess!
So good! So easy. All 4 kids gobbled it up. Thanks for another winner!Â
This was ridiculously good. My teens loved it. Reminds me Bengal BBQ at Disneyland. I used Trader Joe’s Thai sweet ginger sauce and their garlic chili crunch (I didn’t have the garlic chili sauce and thought this a reasonable swap). I used a scant 1/4 cup of white sugar, and used a light hand with the brown sugar (not packed). Huge hit!
Oh. My. Gosh. OMG! My 17 year-old son made this for Sunday dinner and all I could do was dump more rice into chicken dish to clean (eat up) the rest of the sauce. This was so easy (it took my son 20 minutes to make and he did everything you wrote, Mel) and it tastes so good. Excellent recipe for the entire family (I am still dreaming about the sauce:)
This recipe is Perfection! I hate frying, so I’ve never made your most popular sweet & sour chicken, and was so delighted to try this version! It was amazing! My family of 5 (3 teenagers) devoured every bit, no leftovers and they begged me to make this every week! I made with chicken breasts and cut them into stripes but otherwise did not change anything. Thanks for another winner recipe! You rock!Â
Made this last night and we all loved it.
I just got an air fryer (I got the ninja foodi air fry pro xl countertop oven) and this was the first meal I made in it. It made me way too happy! I could do the broccoli and chicken in one appliance that didn’t heat up my house at all! The chicken was delicious and all my kids way down to my toddlers ate it up. Thank you again, Mel!!
Looks amazing! Do you think cornstarch or arrowroot starch would work in place of the flour to make it gluten free?
Definitely worth a try!
Another new favorite recipe from Mel! So easy to make.Â
I made this for Sunday dinner and really liked it. My husband loved that it had some spice to it. This recipe is definitely a keeper.
Oh my, this chicken turned out so good! Â I served it just as you suggested with rice and broccoli. Â The sauce was sooo good on the rice! Â Yum!
We found you years ago because of your sweet and sour chicken recipe, a family favorite. This recipe is equally as good and easy to make. YUM!
Also, I really love having chicken recipes that can be baked in the oven.
Got the chilli sauce on Amazon! Made it tonight, and was stoked we made the same meal, the same day!🙌 It was good, and I will definitely make it again. The sauce was fantastic! I kept dipping my broccoli into the pan. I did a heaping tablespoon of the chili sauce because I like things spicy, as do my kiddos (I’ve trained them well! Now if only I could train the husband 😜). Thank you Mel!🫶
Hi Mel, I made this after finding the chili garlic sauce locally. Â It was phenomenal. Â I’ve made the baked sweet and sour one so many times and we all love it, but it is work! This was a stellar method to cook the chicken, Mel. Â I really like this sauce better because I find it’s not as pungent as the sweet and sour and my kitchen did not have that strong vinegar smell. Â I only used a scant teaspoon of the chili garlic and it was plenty for us as we are not big on spice. Â I used safflower oil in lieu of the butter – trying to save on some sat fat – and it worked perfectly. I think the chicken tenders are key to having a really nice and tender piece of chicken, given that it is cooked at such a high temp. Â I would definitely keep using the tenders in the future vs. try a chicken breast. Â Really yummy over some jasmine rice. Â Loved it so much, thank you. Â PS – I sent you a strawberry cookie recipe via email today!!!
Yum! Made this last night and it came together so quickly. You are a genius! You can tell a busy person figured out how to make this as efficiently as possible and I really appreciate it. It was a hit and will be a regular at our house.
I made this for dinner last night and everyone loved it. Â I doubled the recipe so we would have left overs for the next day. Â I ended up with one serving of leftovers. Â Thank you for perfecting this wonderful recipe. Â It will be on repeat in our home.
This was phenomenal!!! My kids absolutely devoured it. I doubled the sauce because I’m a sauce junky and it left plenty to smother our rice in. This is a keeper and I’ve already sent the recipe to 3 friends!
Had it for dinner tonight. It came together quickly and was delicious. I will be making it again. Thanks, Mel!
My family liked this recipe. It was relatively easy to make but the spice was missing.
Made this last night and it was so delicious and so easy! Definitely a low effort high reward recipe. My husband loved it too! Will be making regularly!!Â
Nailed it! I have wanted to make your sweet and sour chicken for years but never wanted to go through all the steps for either version. This one was easy, and the family agree that this is the best sauce ever! I us used whole wheat flour and white vinegar.
Since I prefer making things homemade, I made Garlic Chili Sauce with 3 Tbs chili powder, 4 minced garlic cloves, 2 Tbs white vinegar, 1 tsp sugar, S&P, and enough water to thin for sauce–a variation of Mike Hultquist’s Huy Fong sauce. I used 2 tsp of this in the recipe and the heat was perfect for us. THANK YOU for another blessing of fabulous food.
That’s awesome, Jennifer! Thanks for including your variations!
ooooweeee, allll the thumbs up for this incredibly yummy recipe. My family devoured it. One son couldn’t stop himself from repeatedly telling me how good it was. This one will be in the rotation for sure and I am also certain it will be heavily requested. Thank you!
I am so happy to read this, Kellie! It’s super validating considering we were all basically licking our plates clean.
hahaha! yes! We were able to stop just short of licking the plates!
Made this for dinner tonight. Â So yummy. Followed recipe exactly except for using breasts sliced into strips instead of tenders.Â
Excellent, Nancy!
So dang good. And easy! I doubled it and used two pans. I added S & P to the flour in an empty bread bag and shook up the chicken strips in that to make it even easier. Definite crowd pleaser (other than my 7-year-old who won’t eat anything lately 🙄). Can’t wait to make it again!
Definitely been there with a resident “7-year old” (although not always that age, haha) who turns up their noses at dinner. Do they know they’re missing out on this level of deliciousness?? 🙂
Delicious! Â Made this tonight – so tasty! Â I used olive oil instead of butter, came out great. Also, didn’t have tenders so I cut up boneless chicken breasts, again great. Thanks Mel, for another fabulous recipe.Â
Fantastic, Brenda! Thanks for detailing your changes!
Excellent dish! Super simple and extraordinarily delicious!! I was about to make the fried version but glad I went with this one instead. 5 stars! Highly recommend!!
Yay! Glad you loved it, Lorie! I’m making it tomorrow for dinner to celebrate my son’s last day of high school. It was his meal request when I asked!
As a major fan of your firecracker chicken, I was a little skeptical. But, honestly this was amazing! So tender and quick! As usual, you have given me another impressive go-to recipe! I appreciate all of your hard work and generous sharing of recipes.
Forgot to leave the 5 star rating!
Instant hit for our family. I have littles, so I did about half of the chili garlic sauce (the brand we use runs hotter) and then those who wanted more added it directly to their plate. It’s been a long time since every one in the family liked a meal so much. Thanks Mel!Â
Thanks for the comment and review, Lindsey! Love, love that this was a hit with everyone!
Made it tonight and loved it!! The process was super simple and extremely delicious!! Even my pickier eaters cleared their plate. A winner and a keeper!!!! Thanks Mel!!Â
I used the Trader Joe’s chili sauce and it turned out excellent. And mild.Â
What does the label on the Trader Joe’s chili garlic sauce actually say?  Can’t seem to find it. I see sweet chili sauce and chili crunch???Â
Love hearing that, Amanda!! Yay to a meal that even the picky eaters devour!
Wowowow!!!  I’m a huge fan of sweet and sour chicken, so I wasn’t sure whether this would be a home run with me or not.  I’m still snarfing it down as I write this review.  This is amazing!!!  It’s just me feeding my face, and I canNOT stop shoveling it in.  Really, really good!  Hopefully, I’ll have some leftovers for lunch tomorrow…but I’m not sure.
Hahaha, your comment made me laugh, Joy. So happy you liked it!!
This is my new favorite way to prepare lawn dinosaur! It had my husband and I going “mmm”, “snacky”, “wow”, after each bite. Hit the spot!
Thanks Mel, for yet another stellar recipe! You never let me down!
Could I make this with chicken breasts which I have in my fridge right now to use tomorrow night? Would you just modify the cook time? If so, what would you suggest for cook times for each step? Or could I slice the chicken breasts into smaller, chicken tender size pieces and then proceed with the recipe as written? Would appreciate your advice! Recipe looks great! Thanks!
Yes, I think you could! I’d keep the cooking time and temp the same and cut the chicken breasts into strips.
Excited to try this!🤟
Made this for dinner tonight. It was so easy and quick! We all loved it, although it was a little too spicy for my younger kids. I added 2tsp of chili garlic sauce, and will probably reduce it even more next time.
Thanks for the feedback, Rebe! Good idea to adjust the chili garlic sauce as needed.
What brand of chili garlic sauce do you use? I’m having trouble finding it in my neck of the woods.Â
They sell this brand at our local Wal Mart, hope that helps. I’m excited to try this!
Lee Kum Kee Chili Garlic Sauce, 8 Oz
I usually end up with the Huy Fong brand because it’s the most common brand where I live (at Walmart…and I also get it from Amazon).