Sweet Chili Chicken

I love a good takeout fake-out recipe like kung pao shrimp, Zuppa Toscana, and this sweet chili chicken. When you’re young and single and fancy-free, getting takeout for dinner every night makes sense. When you’ve got a family of 4, you’d go broke doing that! Copycat recipes like sweet chili chicken get the kids running to the table, without breaking the bank. (Even if there aren’t complimentary fortune cookies involved.)

This sweet chili chicken recipe is an easy-peasy stir fry that’s done in under 25 minutes. The name might make you nervous, but rest assured—this recipe has pep, but not necessarily heat. Sweet chili sauce tends to be milder than regular chili sauce, and while there is ginger in here, which can be spicy in large quantities, there’s not very much. In other words, picky eaters will approve!

Homemade Sweet Chili Chicken

Tender white meat chicken. Sweet chili chicken uses boneless skinless chicken breasts which cook up quickly and kids tend to love. You’ll get no complaints!

Quick and easy to make. This recipe can be on the table in under 30 minutes, making it perfect for busy weeknights when you’re juggling dinner with homework and extracurricular activities.

Restaurant flavor. This chicken stir fry has takeout flavor, but in a lightened-up (and budget-friendly!) form.

Ingredient Notes

• Boneless skinless chicken breasts: While this recipe is written for chicken breasts, you can use boneless skinless thighs instead. Keep in mind they take a bit longer to cook. 
• Cornstarch: A key ingredient that plays two roles here: it coats the chicken to make it crispy and once the chicken is added to the sauce, it thickens the sauce so it clings to the chicken.
• Seasonings: The chicken is seasoned with paprika, garlic powder, kosher salt, and ground black pepper.
• Oil: Use whatever you like to use for a stir fry, whether it’s coconut, vegetable, olive, or avocado.
• Sauce: You’ll make your own by starting with store-bought sweet chili sauce as a base and jazzing it up with additional garlic, freshly grated ginger root, soy sauce, and rice vinegar.
• For Serving: I usually serve the chicken with jasmine rice and garnish it with sesame seeds and sliced green onion.

How to Make Sweet Chili Chicken

Mix the seasoning ingredients. In a large bowl (big enough to hold the chicken, too), mix the cornstarch with the paprika, garlic powder, kosher salt, and ground black pepper until well-combined.

Prep the chicken. Cut the boneless skinless chicken breasts into small evenly-sized pieces, about a half-inch thick. I usually slice the breast pieces vertically (the long side of the chicken); then cut each slice into ½ inch pieces. It’s important that the pieces are roughly the same size so they all finish cooking at the same time. 

Season the chicken. Add the chicken to the bowl with the cornstarch mixture and toss until the chicken is evenly coated.

Make the sauce. You’ll want to mix the sauce ingredients before you begin cooking the chicken because once you get started, things will move quickly. In a small bowl or measuring cup, stir together the sweet chili sauce, minced garlic, freshly grated ginger root, soy sauce, and rice wine vinegar.

Cook the chicken. Heat a skillet over medium high heat, then add the oil. Once the oil is shimmering, add the chicken to the pan and cook for 4 minutes without stirring. This allows it to get nicely browned on the bottom.

Stir. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the chicken is evenly browned and cooked through. Remove the chicken to a clean plate and carefully drain off excess oil from the pan. If there isn’t a lot of oil left in the pan, you can simply blot it with paper towels to absorb the oil.

Cook the sauce. Pour the sauce into the pan and simmer over low heat for a minute or two, until it’s heated through. It won’t take long because the skillet is still hot. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the chicken.

Serve. Plate the sweet chili chicken with rice and garnishes. I love brown rice, jasmine rice or long grain white rice cooked in my pressure cooker. Cauliflower rice or quinoa are great options, too.

Recipe Variations

• Try other proteins. Tofu or pork would both work well. I don’t think the sauce would complement steak or other red meat quite as well. (Try this easy beef and vegetable stir fry or sesame beef and vegetables instead.)
• Spice it up. If you prefer a bit more heat in your dishes, add a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes or a dash of sriracha to the sauce to give the sweet chili chicken an extra kick.
• Add vegetables. Bulk up your dinner with broccoli, mushrooms, baby corn, or zucchini. Celery can be a pleasant, crunchy surprise in stir fry, too! Really, almost any vegetable can be added to a stir-fry.
• Double the sauce if needed. If you plan on adding veggies to your stir fry or you want extra sauce for the rice or another side, feel free to double it.
• Make it a salad. Serve the stir fry on a bed of lettuce for a warm salad entrée.

Refrigerate: Store leftover sweet chili chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. It can be stored combined with the rice or separately.

Freeze: The chicken will freeze well but it will not be as crispy when reheated. If this doesn’t bother you, freeze the sweet chili chicken in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating. 

Reheat: This dish reheats best on the stovetop in a skillet set over medium heat. For single portions, the microwave also works, but may make the chicken more tough and dry.

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

• In a large bowl, combine cornstarch, paprika, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.

  2 tablespoons cornstarch, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

• Dice chicken evenly into small pieces, about ½ inch. I like to cut it into long strips, about ½ inch wide, and then make horizontal cuts, about ½ inch apart.

  1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts

• Toss the diced chicken with cornstarch mixture until it’s coated. Set aside.

• In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine sweet chili sauce, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar to make sauce. Set aside.

  ¼ cup sweet chili sauce, 2 cloves garlic, minced, ½ teaspoon grated ginger root, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar

• Heat a large frying pan over medium high heat. Add oil. When oil is shimmering, add chicken in a single layer (and any leftover cornstarch mixture). Cook without stirring for 4 minutes.

  3 tablespoons oil

• Stir and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 10 minutes or until browned, crispy, and cooked through. Turn off the heat and remove chicken from pan. Carefully drain excess oil from pan, or blot it with paper towels.

• Return the skillet to the stove. Over low heat, pour in sauce and stir until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat, add chicken and toss to coat the chicken in the sauce.

• Serve immediately with rice, if desired, and sprinkle with sesame seeds and sliced green onions.

• Make it a stir fry: If you want to make this a stir fry dinner, add your choice of vegetables (sweet onions, broccoli, mushrooms, baby corn, pea pods, etc.) and double the sauce ingredients. After you remove the chicken from the pan, don’t remove the excess oil. Stir fry the vegetables until crisp tender, add the sauce ingredients to the pan until heated, then stir in the chicken. 
• Serving suggestions: Instead of jasmine rice, the chicken could be served with brown rice, quinoa, cauliflower rice, or any grain of your choice. Try it on a bed of lettuce for a warm salad.
• Recipe retested and revised 10/2024. Previously posted as Sweet Chili Chicken Stir Fry. 

 

Serving: 4oz. chicken with sauce, Calories: 282kcal, Carbohydrates: 13g, Protein: 25g, Fat: 14g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 8g, Trans Fat: 0.1g, Cholesterol: 73mg, Sodium: 871mg, Potassium: 479mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 282IU, Vitamin C: 2mg, Calcium: 14mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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