Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken

Invented on a college budget almost 20 years ago, this baked sweet and sour chicken is the most popular recipe on my blog. And even better, it still remains one of our family favorites.

You may have seen this recipe floating around the internet; it’s everywhere! And for good reason. It’s crazy delicious.

But I’m happy (and yes, a little proud) to acknowledge that the delectable sweet and sour chicken recipe originated here (posted way back in 2008, it was one of the first recipes I ever shared on my blog!).

I am a complete sucker for sweet and sour chicken when it comes to take-out. But it’s been hard to find a place that has it down perfectly – crisp on the outside yet completely juicy and flavorful with a sweet and sour punch. Thankfully, I found a homemade version from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe that has it down to a tee.

What makes this recipe so perfect is that the chicken is first fried to get that crisp exterior. Then it gets baked in a low temperature for an hour, really letting the sweet and sour flavors meld right into the chicken. I was worried that the chicken would get overcooked but it was actually so unbelievably tender. And the flavor packs in quite a punch!

With over 800 comments, 50+ 5-star reviews, and almost half a million pins/shares, that quick glance will tell you there is something special about this recipe.

If you’re new to the world of baked sweet and sour chicken, let me give you a quick rundown.

First, this recipe, while delicious and absolutely and totally worth it, is going to be a bit more work than your average Tuesday night spaghetti.

It’s not complicated. It’s not hard. But it’s also not a 30-minute meal. So with that caveat in place, here’s the 5-second overview.

Ingredients

• 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1½ cup cornstarch
• 3 eggs, beaten
• ¼ cup canola oil
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 4 tablespoons ketchup
• ¼ cup white vinegar
• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Cut chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces and season with salt and pepper.
2. In separate bowls, place cornstarch and slightly beaten eggs. Dip chicken into cornstarch then coat in egg mixture.
3. Heat canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook chicken until browned. Place the chicken in a 9 x 13 greased baking dish.
4. In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine sugar, ketchup, apple cider vinegar, white vinegar, soy sauce, and garlic salt. Pour over chicken and bake for 1 hour.
5. I stirred the chicken every 15 minutes so that it coated them in the sauce.

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