My journeys around these Interwebs leads me some interesting places. Some I come back to time after time for inspiration and ideas. And thanks to those sites, I discover new destinations on a daily basis. I’m telling you, it really IS a world wide web y’all. Today I’d like you to journey with me to the world of the Brown Eyed Baker for some Sweet and Sour Chicken.
In her post, Michelle said, “This recipe, although it takes awhile to get from the stove to your plate, is well worth the effort. The flavor of the sauce is perfect, the texture of the chicken is wonderful and all together, you’d think you ordered this from the neighborhood Chinese restaurant.” Yeah, what she said. For two reasons:
1 – This dish will take you a long ass time to get on the table. So don’t come home, casually glance over the recipe and seeing that nothing needs to be marinated, decide to settle into watching that episode of The Gilmore Girls that’s sitting on your dvr before you start dinner. You will be very sorry when you come back into the kitchen at 6:30 only to realize that you’re not going to eat until about 8pm.
2 – Assuming that you choose to ignore #1 above, it will still be worth the effort to start making this even if you don’t get to eat until 8pm. Because this Sweet and Sour Chicken is that good.
Somewhere between coating and battering and browning the chicken, I had my doubts. There was also some pesky basting every 15 minutes for the hour of oven time. And then there was the whole it’s late and I’m really hungry whining going on in my head. I was determined that under no circumstances would I like this dish. But if the happy dance I did as soon as I took one bite of a sticky, glazed, tangy, sweet morsel is any indication, my determination is no match for Sweet and Sour Chicken.
Sorry Luke, Lorelai, Rory, and Logan, but you’re no match for Sweet and Sour Chicken either. The next time this comes up on the week’s menu, y’all are just going to have to chill out in dvr land until I get SSC in the oven. If you tasted even one bite, you’d understand completely.
Sweet and Sour Chicken
Brown Eyed Baker’s Adaptation of Amber’s Take Out Fake Out
BAH Note: Unless you scale this recipe down and only make half (which isn’t a bad idea if you cook for one), I suggest working in batches from the point where the chicken goes into the cornstarch. I also suggest being prepared to get your hands pretty dirty because I found that my hands were the best tool for getting the chicken from the cornstarch to the egg and then the frying pan. Just remember to wash them thoroughly after handing the chicken.
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup cornstarch
- 3 eggs
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 4 tablespoons ketchup
- 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Heat the oven to 325 degrees.
Combine the sugar, ketchup, vinegar, soy sauce and garlic powder in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Set sauce aside.
Cut the chicken breasts into bite sized chunks. Place the cornstarch in a resealable plastic bag, add the chicken pieces, and shake to coat.
Crack the eggs into a medium sized bowl and whisk. Shake excess cornstarch from chicken and coat chicken with egg.
Heat half the oil over medium high heat in a large frying pan, add half of the chicken, and brown on all sides. Remove cooked chicken to a 9×13 baking dish and repeat with the remaining chicken.
Pour the sauce over the chicken and give it a stir once or twice so the pieces are well coated. Bake for 1 hour, basting and turning the chicken in the sauce every 15 minutes.
Bon Appetit Hon 
Oh I’m so glad you enjoyed this and found it worth your time! I think it’s one of the most delicious dinners. And I am also a big Gilmore Girls fan 🙂
I adore this recipe. I made it again this weekend and will be lunching on the leftovers.
My dad would love this one! I don’t do sweet and sour, but he loves it!
TKW, I’m going to make this when I take the kitchen on the road to visit my parents in Florida. Instead of getting take out, we’ll make some take out fake out.
My kids love this…and I love them…so I might just take the time!
Kristin, I bet you could get the kids to help you if you promise them delish Sweet and Sour Chicken.
this is going to appear on my menu as soon as we finish PIG WEEK…….pork loin, ham and cabbage pork loin etc
Emily, let me know how this works for you. Pig WEEK?
LOL! Pig Week…….I resurrected a huge pork loin from the depths of the freezer. I used RobIn Miller’s Foodtv recipes ( she’s the one who makes 3 meals for the week out of one huge cooking session) I made her Asian Pork Loin. (YUMMO) we had that sunday, Mon was spaghetti and meatballs ( pork ones) Tuesday the rest of the pork loin, Wednesday, ham and cabbage at the VFW. Tonight is supposed to be more pork loin Cuban sandwiches…..PIG WEEK.
this is the best…better than take out! We ate if before I got to take its picture. A little messy but I will improve next time. the sauce is soooooooooooooo good!
thank you so much . I see this with almost any kind of meat. Spouse says it needs pineapple SIGH! Is nothing sacred?
Emily, isn’t that sticky sauce the best? If the spouse insists on pineapple, maybe you can just garnish his with some.
This sauce is as close to heaven as i may ever get. wings woulds like this too anybody have wings for Easter dinner?
Emily, I’m taking this recipe with me to Florida next week. My dad is not a chicken eater so I’m going to see if he’d be interested in Sweet and Sour pork. The sauce is incredible.
I was just thinking that I needed to find a sweet and sour chicken recipe I could make at home. The take-out stuff is great (I order at least once every 2 weeks- I know- it’s horrible!) but I have been dying to find the perfect make at home recipe. A million thanks!
Christine, this sweet and sour chicken is fabulous, definitely worth all the work. I’ve also made it with pork, but I prefer chicken. Let me know how you like it.
I made this last night and, Wendi, I LOVE YOU!!!!! I could have died afterwards- this was heavenly. The only bad part? I dropped my camera in the sauce trying to get a pic of it! I’m so distraught! The only thing keeping me happy? Memories of this lovely meal!
I love hearing that you think this recipe is a keeper. As messy as the preparation may be, the payback is huge.
Sad face about your camera though. I hope that wasn’t a total loss. However, let it be a reminder to the rest of us to make sure our cameras are securely strapped to our necks or wrists when we shoot.
The prep wasn’t too much of a mess- a little sticky but so worth it.
I’m on the phone now with the camera people- hopefully all is not lost!
Christine, I’ve got my fingers crossed that the camera can be saved.
I’m trying to imagine the look on the person’s face as you try and explain that you dropped your camera into a mess of sweet and sour sauce.