Next Post
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
This simple Spicy Sesame Chicken and Ginger Rice is about to become your new go-to meal. Easy homemade Asian inspired chicken, tossed in a gingery, sweet, spicy, and extra sticky soy pomegranate sauce with toasted sesame seeds and broccoli. Serve over gingery rice for sticky chicken made quicker than any take-out meal…and healthier too.
December is the busiest month of the year. The days might be short, but our lists are a mile long. Between, work, family, and holiday festivities, it’s a lot. And I know for so many that dinner can quickly become an after thought.
I get it, but that’s why I love recipes this. It’s sticky Asian inspired chicken, but made at home, and with very littler effort.
When my brother Red was visiting last week he asked for a spicy Asian dinner. I knew exactly what I wanted to make him. And fortunately, it turned out perfect and everyone loved it!
Here are the steps
I wanted to make sure my “sticky sauce” would really stick to the chicken. So start out by coating the chicken in a bit of flour.
This is a very, very light coating, but it’s just enough to help all that sticky sauce actually stick. Once you’ve coated the chicken in flour, arrange it to one side of a large greased baking sheet. Then drizzle generously with sesame oil or olive oil. This is your answer to really getting the chicken crispy and creating the perfect “oven fried” chicken.
Next, the broccoli. I kept the broccoli basic, just oil, salt, and pepper. You’ll want to get the broccoli roasted and extra crispy in the oven. And since the chicken cooks at such a high temperature, the broccoli has just the right amount of time to roast, soften, turn crisp, and lightly char on the outside.
Delicious, especially when tossed together with the chicken and sauce.
The sauce
The sauce is really the key to this chicken. It’s honestly so addicting. Sweet, tangy, a touch spicy, and once boiled down, super sticky. I love to use pomegranate juice for the perfect amount of sweetness. I know it might sound odd, but the pomegranate juice adds sweetness, tanginess, and a deep dark color too. It’s one of my favorite ingredients to use in Asian inspired recipes.
The sauce takes only a few minutes to thicken up on the stove. It’s usually ready by the time the chicken has finished cooking.
Then just toss the chicken into the sauce with sesame seeds and let the sauce thicken around the chicken.
While everything is cooking, make a quick pot of gingery rice and then serve the chicken over the rice.
Nothing fancy here, just simple cooking. A delicious take-out-style meal made at home in way less than an hour – which we love!
Looking for other Asian style recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Ginger Sesame Chicken Potstickers
Lastly, if you make this Spicy Sesame Chicken and Ginger Rice, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Crispy Sesame Chicken and Ginger Rice
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 450 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breasts, cut into 2 inch cubes
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour (or gluten free all-purpose flour)
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 cups broccoli florets
- 2 shallots, sliced
- 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil or sesame oil
- 1/2 cup pomegranate juice
- 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 4 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, use more or less to taste
- 1 star anise
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds
- green onions, for serving
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 475° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or grease with oil.2. Add the chicken, egg, and a pinch of pepper to a bowl. Toss to combine. Add the flour to another bowl. Dredge the chicken in batches through the flour, tossing to coat. Place the chicken on one side of the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of oil. Add the broccoli and shallots to the other side of the pan and toss with 2 more tablespoons of oil, salt, and pepper. Bake for 12 minutes. Toss the broccoli, flip the chicken, and return to the oven another 3-5 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.3. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, combine the pomegranate juice, soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar, garlic, ginger, star anise, bay leaf, and red pepper flakes. Set over medium-high heat and bring the sauce to a boil. Boil 5-8 minutes, until the sauce thickens and reduces by about 1/3. Stir in the chicken, broccoli, and sesame seeds. Cook until the sauce coats the chicken. 4. Serve the chicken, broccoli, and sauce over bowls of ginger rice (recipe in notes) topped with green onions.
Notes
Ginger Rice: Combine 2 cups water in a medium pot. Bring to a boil. Add 1 cup basmati rice, 1 inch grated fresh ginger, 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, and a pinch of salt. Stir to combine, cover, then turn the heat down to the lowest setting possible. Allow the rice to cook 10 minutes on low, then turn the heat off completely and let the rice sit, covered, for another 15-20 minutes (don't take any peeks inside!). Remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork.
Very good recipe. Guests were impressed, I agree with other comments that it is worthy of a restaurant meal. I would add prep time to at least 30 minutes (with cutting chicken, brocolli, grating ginger and garlic and making the sauce.) The cook time was good for me even though the chicken was not super crispy. Maybe I should have added more flour since I had to add more chicken and brocolli to serve 6 people for dinner. Next time, I will add a bit more sauce, but am very pleased with this receipe. Thanks Tieghan!
Thank you so so much for giving this recipe a try! Hope you have an awesome New Year! xT
Do we take the bay leaf out once the sauce cooks? Excited to try!
Hi Livia! Yes, you take the bay leaf out once the sauce cooks! 🙂 xT
Sounds delicious! Can this be made the day before Christmas and warmed up?
Hi Debbie! Yes, that should work fine! xT
How much is a serving? 1 cup?
Thank you!
Hi Emma,
Yes, I would say about a heavy cup:) Let me know if you have any other questions! xT
So good! We love you, HBH!
Aww thank you! 🙂 xT
Very good! I’m impressed. This was like a legit meal you’d get at a restaurant. I had to double the sauce because I made extra chicken so next time I’d add a little more ginger and a little more red pepper since it wasn’t significantly spicy, but overall it was great!
Wow thank you so much! xT
I made this last night but had to sub orange juice with pineapple for pomegranate juice. Not exactly the same but wanted to share for those who might not have pomegranate juice on hand. Absolutely delicious recipe & easy to make. Will definitely be making again!!
Hey Kaitlyn,
Awesome!! So glad to hear that the juice substitutes worked well for you, thanks for trying this recipe! xT
Not sure who can prep this whole thing in 15 minutes, but it turned out tasting amazing. Two thumbs up but it took me over an hour to prep and cook. And I am fairly fast in the kitchen.
Hey Omar,
Fantastic!!🌺 I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you and thanks so much for making it! Sorry this took longer than expected! xT
Hi! Would it be possible to cook the chicken and sauce and freeze it together, then thaw later? This looks delish and I’d love to make it a freezer meal. I’d wait to do the broccoli the day of since it will probably get mushy in the freezer.
Hey Claire,
Totally, that will work well for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
This was a much enjoyed, brilliant meal. Simple, delicious, full of flavor. Because your recipes are so amazing I feel brave enough to improvise on a couple of things: combining maraschino cherry juice and fig jam to sub for pomegranate, Panko to flour because I didn’t have enough. I use a rice cooker and added fresh ginger slices and chicken broth instead of water. We loved this meal. 💕 thanks for sharing your fab recipes
Hey Colleen,
Happy Monday!!☃️ Thanks a lot for making this recipe and sharing your review, I love to hear that it was a winner! xx
This was great – loved how spicy it was! I doubled the broccoli (used stems too) and added carrots since I like more vegetables. I forgot to make the ginger rice, but used more ginger in the dish simply by accident. Tasty! For leftovers – I layered rice plus topping in a skillet to let it get warm and crispy. Yum! Thanks and happy holidays 🙂
Hey Amy,
Wonderful!! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe and sharing your feedback! Love to hear that it was enjoyed! Happy Holidays!🎄🎁
Looks delicious! I’m wondering if it’s possible to roast frozen broccoli florets or should they be just steamed and added afterward?
Hey Erin,
I would use fresh broccoli for this recipe rather than frozen just so it doesn’t become soggy. Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xx