Chicken breast, cornstarch, vinegar, soy sauce, and other ingredients go into the classic baked sweet and sour chicken recipe that I adore.
This baked sweet and sour chicken is so much better than takeout, and it will save you a ton of money, too! One of the most popular dishes on my food blog is this baked sweet and sour chicken. Because it’s baked and not fried, it’s been a staple in my family for over ten years now.
Although I developed this recipe for baked sweet and sour chicken almost 20 years ago on a tight student budget, it remains one of my blog’s most popular posts. And to this day, it remains a fan-favorite in our household. This recipe is all over the internet, so you’ve probably seen it before. And not without good reason. Extremely delicious.
If you’re unfamiliar with baked sweet and sour chicken, allow me to provide a brief overview. The first thing you should know is that there will be a little more work involved than with your typical Tuesday night spaghetti but the end result will be well worth it. It’s not hard to do. It’s reasonably priced. It takes more than 30 minutes to prepare. With that caveat in place, I present the synopsis in 5 seconds or less.
Ingredients
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
½ cup cornstarch
2 large eggs, beaten
¼ cup vegetable oil
FOR THE SWEET AND SOUR SAUCE
¾ cup sugar
½ cup apple cider vinegar
¼ cup ketchup
1 tablespoon soy sauce
½ teaspoon garlic powder
How to prepare
Step 1:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Then lightly oil a baking dish or coat with nonstick spray.
Step 2:
To make the sauce, whisk together sugar, vinegar, ketchup, soy sauce and garlic powder in a large bowl and leave it aside. Season chicken with salt and pepper to taste in a large bowl.
Step 3:
Stir in the cornstarch and gently toss to combine. One after the other, dip the chicken into the eggs. Then heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan, add chicken and cook for about 1-2 minutes or until golden brown, about 1-2 minutes.
Step 4:
Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and throw away excess oil. Add the chicken to the prepared baking dish, then top with sweet and sour sauce. Place into the oven and bake until the sauce has thickened, about 55 minutes, turning over every 15 minutes to evenly coat the chicken.
Step 5:
Serve immediately and enjoy!