Why wait for takeout when you can make it at home?
This sweet and sour chicken recipe combines tender chicken, pineapple, and vegetables in a quick and easy sweet and sour sauce.
Serve it over rice or noodles for an easy meal.
This Sweet and Sour Chicken is Better than Take-out Because …
- One pan is all you need to make this Chinese-style takeout fake-out!
- Basic ingredients and simple steps mean this dish is on the table in minutes!
- It’s versatile, change the veggies to your favorites or what’s in the produce drawer.
- Serve over ramen noodles or cauliflower fried rice to soak up all that yummy sauce!
What You’ll Need for Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Chicken – Choose boneless skinless chicken; either breasts or skinless chicken thighs will work in this recipe. Pork, shrimp, and even tofu are all great options as well.
- Pineapple – Use canned pineapple chunks in juice (not syrup), as the juice is used in the sweet and sour sauce.
- Vegetables – Green peppers, red bell peppers, and onions add a sweet crunch and a pop of color to sweet and sour chicken. Any color of pepper will work.
- Sauce – This sauce is easy to make with basic ingredients from the pantry and fridge. If time is short, use a store-bought jar of sweet and sour sauce.
How to Make Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Make the sauce according to the recipe below. Set aside.
- Toss chicken pieces in seasoned cornstarch and cook in oil.
- Remove chicken from the pan and cook peppers and pineapple in sauce until tender.
- Stir in chicken and simmer until sauce is thickened.
Serve with white or fried rice.
Leftovers?
- This recipe tastes even better the next day! Keep it in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Reheat on the stove with a little water to loosen the sauce. Serve on its own or over freshly cooked rice or ramen noodles.
- Freeze portions in zippered bags for up to 4 months and reheat from frozen on medium-low heat on the stovetop.
More Chicken Stirfry Recipes
Did you enjoy this Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe? Leave a comment and rating below.
Sweet and Sour Chicken
Tender chicken is stir fried with bell pepper and juicy pineapple in a homemade sweet and sour sauce.
Equipment
- 1 Skillet
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts or boneless thighs, cut into 1-inch chunks
- ½ tablespoon cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
- sesame seeds and/or green onions for garnish, optional
For the Stir Fry
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
- 15 ounces pineapple chunks (1 can) drained, juice reserved
- 1 red bell pepper chopped 1-inch
- 1 green bell pepper chopped 1-inch
- 1 small sweet onion chopped 1-inch
For the Sauce
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar packed
- ⅓ cup white vinegar
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 ½ tablespoons cornstarch
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together reserved pineapple juice, brown sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, ketchup and 1 ½ tablespoons of cornstarch.
- Cut the chicken into 1-inch pieces and toss with ½ tablespoon of cornstarch and salt.
- Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook without stirring for 3 minutes or until browned on one side. Stir and cook for 6 -7 minutes or until cooked through. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
- Add the onion, red pepper, green pepper, ginger, and garlic to the skillet. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until softened.
- Whisk the sauce and add it to the skillet with the pineapple. Simmer for 2 minutes or until slightly thickened. Add the chicken back to the skillet and stir to combine.
- Serve over rice and garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.
Notes
- Recipe from Good Fast Eats by Amy Flanigan.
- Nutrition information does not include rice.
- Leftovers may be stored up to 3 days in the refrigerator, or up to 4 months in the freezer.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 238 | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 48mg | Sodium: 576mg | Potassium: 559mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 779IU | Vitamin C: 52mg | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 1mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Chicken, Dinner, Entree, Main Course
Cuisine American, Asian© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
What happened to the original recipe? It was my favourite and this one is totally different!
This recipe has been slightly tweaked, here is the original:
• 1 ½ tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon water
• ⅓ cup rice wine vinegar
• ⅓ cup brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons ketchup
• 1 ½ tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
• 8 ounces pineapple chunks drained, juice reserved
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 ½ pound boneless chicken breast cut into chunks
• salt and pepper
• 1 small red bell pepper cut into one inch strips
• 1 small green bell pepper cut into strips
• 1 small sweet onion cut into strips
• cooked white rice optional
• sesame seeds for garnish optional
1. In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and water until combined. Whisk in rice wine vinegar, ketchup, soy sauce, brown sugar and reserved pineapple juice.
2. In a large skillet heat the vegetable oil over medium high heat. Toss the chicken in the remaining ½ tablespoon of cornstarch and season with salt and pepper.
3. Add to the skillet and cook without stirring for 2-3 minutes. Mix and continue to cook for 6 -7 minutes. With a slotted spoon transfer the chicken to a plate.
4. Add red bell pepper, green bell pepper and onion to the skillet; cook for 3 minutes or until vegetables soften. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the sweet and sour sauce mixture, along with the pineapple chunks. Cook for another 1 to 2 minutes to warm thoroughly and allow the sauce to thicken slightly. Add the chicken back to the skillet and stir to combine.
5. Serve over cooked white rice.
My husband and I really enjoyed this. I didn’t have peppers, so thinly sliced carrots. It was delicious!
Hi Holly. your recipes are great, as I am a big foodie and try to turn. recipes into my version. I made your Sweet and sour Chicken. Awesome. The only thing I changed is I used a fresh pine apple, let it stand in a container cut up for a few days. Then added brown sugar water to the pine apple. left for a few days in the fridge. used the pineapple and the juice. So much better than a tin if pineapple. I am from South Africa and we have Cantonese Chinese food which is from Canton. I find the Chinese food here quite awful. I make my own Spring Rolls which is made from left over Chop Suey.
Your Chili is the Best the beer makes it. For the last Two Super Bowls I make it. Great Hit
So glad you’ve loved the recipes Cheryl. I bet fresh pineapple took this recipe to the next level, thanks for the tip!
My husband loved this dish! It was a little too sweet for me, but it really was delicious. I followed the recipe pretty much as written and it was very simple to make. I will definitely be making this again!
Thanks for trying our recipe, Gretchen!
Excellent!! This recipe is great, I make it all the time, it’s a family favorite.
I made this and loved it.
Made this tonight, was a big hit with everyone including the grandkids. Doubled the recipe to feed everyone, only change I made was adding more peppers. Will make again!
Glad to hear this recipe was a hit with your family, Linda!
I enjoy Looking through your recipes I copy a lot
Keep those good recipes coming thank you
I am so glad you are enjoying the recipes Dee!
This recipe is becoming one of my regulars in my menu rotation. So much flavour, I love the sweetness of the pineapple and the sauce, the veggies are cooked to tender-crisp. One pot = perfect for a weeknight! Will definitely be repeating. 10/10
All of your recipes look wonderful. Looking forward to our journey to better meal planning for healthy, fast, tasty meals. Thank you.