Sweet and Sour Chicken Thighs
You might think that this sweet and sour chicken thighs would be similar to old-school Chinese takeout. But instead of getting breaded morsels of chicken, you’ll be making a tender, healthy, and flavorful dish bursting with tangy sour notes and an unbeatable level of sweetness. Now, doesn’t that sound better than grabbing a boxed-up dinner?
I love that you can switch up the cut of chicken you use based on what your family’s into. Thighs, drums, wings, and breast all work beautifully with the smooth and zingy sauce.
Simply serve everything over a bed of fluffy rice and let it seep up the goodness! And that pop of color and crunch from the green onions? Delightful.
Why You’ll Love This Sweet and Sour Chicken
- It’s ready in a flash and is a perfect family meal (even for fussy eaters).
- The sweet and sour sauce is better than anything you’d get from a Chinese takeout joint.
- It’s made with just a handful of easy-to-find ingredients.
- The mixture of sweet and umami flavors in this recipe is seriously satisfying over rice.
Ingredients
The full printable recipe card with measurements and instructions is found at the bottom of the post.
- Boneless, skinless chicken thighs: Chicken thighs stay moist while cooking, making them an awesome alternative to chicken breast!
- Soy sauce: For a classic, umami flavor.
- Vegetable oil: To cook your chicken and form the base.
- Chili powder: For a (slight!) burst of spice.
- Celery seed: Gives the dish a distinctive, tangy twist with a heady flavor.
- Garlic powder: Offers a subtle hint of savory flavor.
- Brown sugar: To sweeten things up.
- Tomato sauce: For an acidic burst of flavor that contrasts against the brown sugar.
- White vinegar.
- Green onions (for garnish).
How to Make Sweet and Sour Chicken Thighs
- Step One: Preheat oven to broil on high.
- Step Two: Place chicken thighs in a casserole dish.
- Step Three: Add soya sauce and vegetable oil to a small bowl and stir to combine. Pour over chicken thighs.
- Step Four: In a small bowl, stir together chili powder, celery seed, garlic powder and brown sugar. Sprinkle over chicken thighs.
- Step Five: Broil for 5 minutes. Remove from oven.
- Step Six: In a medium bowl, stir together tomato sauce and vinegar. Pour over chicken.
- Step Seven: Bake for 50 minutes at 375°F. Serve over rice.
Equipment Needed
You honestly don’t need much equipment to pull this sweet and sour chicken recipe together. I recommend picking up these handy tools to have on standby in your kitchen.
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What to Serve with Sweet and Sour Chicken
I honestly think this sweet and sour chicken works best with rice. The rice soaks up all the yummy sauce and makes everything far more delicious.
You can also serve it with slices of green onion or some jazzy fried rice if you’re feeling fancy!
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- It’s a strange one, but I recommend reserving some of the sauce to save for later. You can pour it over virtually anything for a few days!
- If you want the spices and sauce to truly seep into the chicken, feel free to let it sit in a marinade for a few minutes. Don’t leave it too long before placing it in the oven, but a few minutes can make all the difference.
Variations and Substitutions
- If you’re not a fan of chicken thighs, you can replace them with wings, breast, or drumsticks. Just use whatever you have lying around.
Storage Instructions
You can store this sweet and sour chicken in an airtight container in the fridge for about 4 days. Past this point, you’ll probably need to throw it out.
Can I Freeze?
You can totally freeze this sweet and sour chicken in an airtight, lidded container. Make sure you let the dish cool completely before freezing it.
Oh, and remember to label any containers to make sure you eat everything within 3 months!
To defrost this dish, pull it out of the freezer the night before and let it thaw. You can then reheat it in the microwave for a few minutes.
Chicken Recipes
- Panda Express Mushroom Chicken
- Orange Chicken
- Sticky Chicken
- Roasted Red Pepper Chicken
- One-Pan Lemon Thyme Chicken
- Honey Curried Chicken
- Peking Chicken
- Hawaiian Chicken
- Peach Chicken
- Cabbage & Peanut Butter Chicken Stir-Fry
- Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
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Sweet and Sour Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 8 to 10 boneless skinless chicken thighs
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- ½ tsp chili powder
- ½ tsp celery seed
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 ½ cups tomato sauce
- ½ cup white vinegar
- green onions for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to broil on high.
- Place chicken thighs in a casserole dish.
- Add soya sauce and vegetable oil to a small bowl and stir to combine. Pour over chicken thighs.
- In a small bowl, stir together chili powder, celery seed, garlic powder and brown sugar. Sprinkle over chicken thighs.
- Broil for 5 minutes. Remove from oven.
- In a medium bowl, stir together tomato sauce and vinegar. Pour over chicken.
- Bake for 50 minutes at 375°F. Serve over rice.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Oh wow, we love sweet & sour chicken in our home. This looks so delicious and its a must try recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Sounds delicious. I love cooking chicken thighs and pretty much never cook chicken without some kind of sauce also. Thanks for sharing with us at Merry Monday. We love your recipes! Hope Spring makes an appearance soon!
I am vegetarian myself, but this would be right up my SO’s alley! I know he’d love this, & I’d love to try making this for him.
Looks tasty! Thanks for sharing at the Inspiration Spotlight party @DearCreatives pinned, and sharing. See you again soon.
Your Sweet and Sour Chicken looks delicious, we will really enjoy this recipe. Thanks so much for sharing with us at Full Plate Thursday for the party this week. Hope you have a great week and come back to see us real soon!
Miz Helen
Ahhh it is finally warmer h here I know what you mean about winter holding on. It doesnt want to let go.
This chicken sounds really good. I make a lot of chicken dishes and this would be a nice break. I really hadnt done this one before, so I am certainly going to.
YUMMMM!! So pinned this one!
I would love for you to share this with my Facebook Group for recipes, crafts, tips, and tricks: https://www.facebook.com/groups/pluckyrecipescraftstips/
Thanks for joining Cooking and Crafting with J & J!
This sweet and sour chicken looks fantastic. I’m always looking for another good chicken recipe and this one definitely is a keeper. Thank you for sharing at Tasty Tuesdays link party.
I would have never thought to broil for five minutes with the brown sugar before adding the rest of the sauce. Definitely going to try this one.
This is one of my favorite recipes! So delicious and easy!
Sweet and Sour is nearly always what I order at a Chinese restaurant and I totally agree, it’s best served over rice,
This is the perfect comfort food dish.
Thank you so much for this delicious recipe. We love sweet and sour chicken and it looks amazing. I have saved the recipe to give it a try.
This looks like any easy weekday meal ! Thanks for sharing !
Yum, this looks like something my whole family would enjoy, so I’ll have to try it soon!
I’m going to try this with different cuts of chicken!
Looks so good! I’m going to try this one for sure.