This post may contain affiliate links. Please see disclosure policy here.
Sweet and Sour Chicken is a delicious family friendly meal. Pan fried chicken combined with bell peppers and pineapple, topped with a sweet and slightly tangy sauce. Even your pickiest eaters will love it and it is ready in just 30 minutes.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe!
Better Than Take Out. This version of Sweet and Sour Chicken has definitely become a family favorite takeout recipe. I am not a big fan of the heavily breaded Sweet and Sour you usually get at Chinese places but this version is light, has amazing flavor and yummy, just the right amount of sweetness and tastes amazing.
Make in Under 30 Minutes. Making it at home is so easy you may never need to order takeout again! It takes just 30 minutes and you can easily substitute pork or beef.
Ingredients Needed
- Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
- All Purpose Flour
- Olive Oil, vegetable oil, canola oil or peanut oil.
- Cornstarch
- Brown Sugar
- Rice Vinegar. Can also use apple cider vinegar.
- Chicken Broth
- Soy Sauce. You can use low sodium or light soy sauce if you prefer.
- Canned Pineapple Chunks, use the juice too!
- Red Bell Pepper
- Onion
- Salt and Pepper
- Sesame seeds for garnish
How to Make Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Cut your chicken into bite-sized pieces and then lightly coat with flour.
- Heat your olive oil in a large skillet and cook the chicken pieces until cooked through. Don’t overcook your chicken which is easy to do when it is cut into small pieces. I often pull it out a minute before I think it is done. Remove the chicken to a plate covered with paper towels while you cook the rest.
- Add your peppers or onions to the pan, there should be enough oil still in the pan. Cook until onions and peppers are tender.
- In same skillet, combine cornstarch, salt, pepper, brown sugar, vinegar, pineapple juice, chicken broth and soy sauce along with the peppers and onions. Stir over a low boil for a few minutes until the sauce thickens. It will thicken more as it cools.
- Add in your cooked chicken and pineapple chunks into the sour sauce and stir to coat. Serve over rice.
Tips from leigh Anne
- Serve sweet and sour chicken with a side of roasted broccoli or roasted carrots.
- For more color, add a sprinkle of chopped green onions at the end along with the sesame seeds.
- For some crunch add some show mein noodles, peanuts or cashews on top.
- Serve with fried rice, white rice, cauliflower rice or brown rice.
- For a little kick, add a sprinkle of red pepper flakes to the sauce.
- Cut chicken into as even pieces as possible to insure even cooking.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use chicken thighs instead?
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs work great for this dish.
How do you store leftover sweet and sour chicken?
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3- days.
It can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Reheat in the microwave or in a saucepan on the stove top.
Can I make sweet and sour pork with this recipe?
Yes! The recipe works great with pork!
Check out more delicious recipes:
Be sure and follow me over on You Tube for weekly cooking demos.
Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts boneless, skinless
- 6 Tbsp flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/8 cup cornstarch
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup vinegar
- 1 20 oz. pineapple chunks reserve juice
- 1/2 cup pineapple juice use reserved juice
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 red bell pepper sliced
- 1/4 cup onion sliced
- sesame seeds for grnish
Instructions
- Cut chicken into bite size pieces and lightly coat in flour mixed with salt and pepper. Fry in olive oil until browned
- Drain and set aside on a plate covered with paper towels.
- Add your peppers or onions to the pan, there should be enough oil still in the pan. Cook until onions and peppers are tender.
- In same skillet, combine cornstarch, salt, pepper, brown sugar, vinegar, pineapple juice, chicken broth and soy sauce along with the peppers and onions. Stir over a low boil for a few minutes until the sauce thickens. It will thicken more as it cools.
- Add chicken and pineapple and stir to coat.
- Cook until heated through
- Serve over rice and garnish with sesame seeds if desired.
Tips & Notes:
- Serve sweet and sour chicken with a side of roasted broccoli or roasted carrots.
- For more color, add a sprinkle of chopped green onions at the end along with the sesame seeds.
- For some crunch add some show mein noodles, peanuts or cashews on top.
- Serve with white rice, cauliflower rice or brown rice.
- For a little kick, add a sprinkle of red pepper flakes to the sauce.
Recommended Products
Nutrition Facts:
Kim says
This was such a hit at our house last night! My 17 year old daughter said it was the best blog recipe I have tried ever (she is very critical because I have made lots of good recipes)! Thank you….
Amanda says
I saw this and a light bulb went off in my head! CORN STARCH? Why haven’t I thought to do a GF breading with that before, and I tried it tonight to make chicken fingers and it was the BEAST I’ve tried since becoming GF 13 years ago! Not a BIG Sweet and Sour fan but It sure helped me with making a great meal for my family and they all loved it too! (I did add spices to the cornstarch)
Amy says
im making this right now! looks amazin! did you use just regular white vinegar or rice vinegar?
Leigh Anne says
I used white but either would work
Wendy B says
I just pinned this! Yummy, thank you.
Barbara says
I was looking for a dinner suggestion last night, and there it was, my husband loves Sweet and Sour, so this was a winner. Except, he likes a lot of sauce so I always have to make twice the amount,. Also with leftovers, it absorbs the liquid. He loves the leftovers, I dont.