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This simple Sheet Pan Sticky Sweet and Sour Chicken is about to become your new go-to meal. Easy homemade ginger chicken, tossed in a spicy, sweet, sour, and extra sticky soy sauce. Serve this meal with roasted broccoli and peppers. And all cooked right alongside the chicken for the easiest sheet pan dinner. Then add a side of steamed rice topped with plenty of cilantro and you’ll be good to go. And the best part…this sticky chicken is so quick and easy to make. A delicious, fun, and healthy dinner any night of the week!
I don’t know what it is about this time of year. But here I am again, creating one sheet pan dinner after another. Today’s recipe is Asian-inspired and it’s one of my favorite sheet pan meals. It’s that sticky, sweet, and sour sauce…it’s just a little bit addicting.
Something about this back-to-school time always inspires me to create quick, family-focused dinners that everyone will love. Sweet and sour chicken (of any kind) is my oldest brother’s favorite dinner-out or order-in meal. He’s been requesting something similar for months, which leads me right into this recipe.
We’re going the take-out, made at home, route here and I’m so excited. It’s been a while since I’ve shared a “take-out” style recipe. It’s not traditional, but so totally delicious. And easy, which is really what we all need during the “back to school” season.
Here are the details – this is quick
It starts with the chicken. I wanted to be sure the sauce would really stick to the chicken. So I tossed the chicken with a beaten egg and dredged it through a ginger/flour mix to coat. This is a very, very light coating, but it’s just enough to help all that sticky sauce actually stick to the chicken.
Once you’ve coated the chicken in flour, arrange it to one side of a large greased baking sheet. Then drizzle the chicken generously with oil to help it crisp up a bit as it bakes in the oven.
Moving onto the vegetables. You can really use whatever mix of vegetables you love most. For me, I felt that broccoli and bell peppers fit this recipe best.
Arrange the vegetables to the other side of the pan and toss with a little olive oil before roasting.
Since the chicken cooks at such a high temperature, the broccoli and peppers have just enough time to lightly char. This leaves them with just the right amount of bite. Delicious!
While the chicken is baking, make the sauce
The sauce is the secret to this recipe, it adds all the flavor. Sweet, tangy, a touch spicy, and once boiled down, super sticky.
The ingredients are simple, but the key is to use sweet Thai chili sauce as a shortcut. Then add in soy sauce, garlic, jalapeños, and a few other ingredients to help the sauce achieve that perfect sweet and saucy flavor.
The sauce takes only a few minutes to thicken up on the stove. It should be good to go by the time the chicken finishes cooking.
Toss the sauce with the chicken, then return the pan to the oven for a few more minutes, and you’re done. Literally so simple.
For serving, I love a bowl of steamed rice. Nothing fancy, but a classic Gerard Family staple. Then finish with fresh cilantro or basil, and of course, extra sauce! Saucy sticky chicken is the only way to go.
Looking for other quick weeknight recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Ginger Sesame Chicken and Crispy Brussels Sprouts.
30 Minute Saucy Ginger Sesame Noodles with Caramelized Mushrooms
Lastly, if you make this Sheet Pan Sticky Sweet and Sour Chicken, 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!
Sheet Pan Sticky Sweet and Sour Chicken
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 428 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
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 pinch each kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 cup broccoli florets
- 2 bell peppers, sliced
- 2 shallots, quartered
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil or sesame oil
- 1 cup sweet Thai chili sauce
- 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 cup apple juice
- 1/4. cup rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- 1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter
- 1 jalapeño, sliced, and seeded if desired
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
- rice and cilantro, 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 and ginger 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 oil. Add the broccoli, peppers, and shallots to the other side of the pan and toss with 2 tablespoons oil. Bake 15 minutes.3. Reduce the oven temp to 400° F.4. Meanwhile, combine the sweet Thai chili sauce, soy sauce, apple juice, rice vinegar, ketchup, peanut butter, jalapeño, and garlic in a medium saucepan. 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. Remove from the heat.5. Pour half the sauce over the chicken, tossing to combine. Toss the vegetables. Return everything to the oven for 3 minutes, until the sauce coats the chicken. Watch closely, the sauce can burn easily.6. Serve the chicken and the remaining sauce over bowls of rice topped with cilantro. Serve the vegetables on the side.
This is soooo good! I left out the jalapeno, but my family still found it slightly spicy-just right. The sauce was thick after boiling for 8 minutes and coated the chicken perfectly. This will definitely be part of our regular rotation.
Hey Lynn,
Awesome!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. Have the best week! xTieghan
What could you use instead of peanut butter?
Hi Kristen,
You can use another nut butter in place of the peanut butter. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
I just left out the peanut butter all together as my daughter is allergic and it was still delicious! The entire family loved it! I have t been disappointed yet by any of your recipes!
Hey Kristen,
Thanks you so very much for trying this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xxTieghan
Could I make this in a skillet instead of the oven?
Thanks
Hi Grace,
Sure, that will work well for you. Please let me know if you give it a try, I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan
The chicken always turns out perfectly tender and the sauce is so yummy. I usually end up doubling the amount of flour and ginger. I find it a little easier to dredge the chicken when there’s a littler more flour 🙂 I’m also slow when it comes to that step so I just plan on a few extra minutes. I do usually have trouble with the sauce thickening. I’ve made it a few times and it never really thickens unless I add a bit of flour or cornstarch and/or cut back the chili sauce to about 3/4 cup. With these few modifications, this is one of my favorite dinners!
Hey Monica,
Fantastic! Thank you so much for making this recipe, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Happy Holidays!? xx
Oops, just wanted to comment that I could not find the sweet thai chili sauce, so I made it from a recipe from the daring gourmet, maybe thatnis why my sauce turned out so sour?!?!
I’m not familiar with that recipe, so yes that could have been the issue:)
We made this tonight, minus the ground ginger. My husband, my three children and I were not excited about the outcome. Followed the recipe exactly, except for the ground ginger. We found the sauce very sour. Chicken and veggies out of the oven were very yummy, maybe a bit soggy for our liking. We will not make it again. Bit I will try another sheet pan recipe, just not sweet-sour next time!
Hi Erika,
So sorry this recipe was not enjoyed, let me know if I can help in anyway! xTieghan
Will be trying this recipe tonight. We live in Germany, the stores are closed here on Sundays, and I do not have ground ginger in the house. Any suggestions as to what I can use instead? Thanks so much!
Hi Erika,
You can just skip the ginger. Please let me know how the recipe turns out, I hope you love it! xTieghan
Just made this tonight and it came out perfectly! My husband is a professional chef, and he loved it, too. I found it to be very easy!
Hi Lora,
Happy Friday! I love to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks so much for giving it a try! xTieghan
Not sure what a I did wrong but my chicken was very mushy because of the dredging. Isn’t it usually flour, egg, flour? Great sauce!
Hey Natalie,
So sorry to hear this, I did not find the additional flour was needed for this recipe. Did you allow the excess egg to drip off? That could have been the issue. Thanks for giving the recipe a try! xTieghan
This is so good! I tried this recipe twice. Once with rice and the veggies. And once yesterday : I just did the chicken, and we ate it in a sandwich like a banh mi. We used the rest of the sauce on the bread ( there is still a lot of sauce we can use for something else), we put grated carrots and the chicken. We loved it! Next time, we’ll put cucumber, coriander and some salad in the sandwich ( we didn’t have all these yesterday as it was an impromptu try). This is going to become a regular dish at home I guess. Thank you Thiegan. ❤️
Hey Perrine,
Wonderful! Love to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks for making it! Have the best week:) xTieghan
It was very easy and very good. Will be making quite often…thanks
Hey Lori,
Happy Sunday! Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for trying it out! xTieghan
Delicious! Have made twice, and the sauce is divine. Reminds me of my days working when we would do Chinese takeout once/week and I’d order Chicken & Garlic Sauce. Only this sauce is 10x better (and I’m sure healthier)! I buy jalapenos in bulk, then dice and freeze them – perfect addition for the sauce and cuts down on prep time. Love your sheet pan recipes, and this one in particular is especially tasty. YUM.
Hey Shelley,
Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have the best day! xTieghan
I’m gluten free and don’t eat Chinese takeout anymore so this really hit the spot for me. Thanks for another delicious and easy recipe 🙂
Hey Morgan,
Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have the best day! xTieghan
What can you use in substitution of apple juice?
Hey Linda,
You could use orange or pomegranate juice. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try! xTieghan
Excellent recipe! Quick question … after cooking the chicken, peppers, broccoli, shallots for 15 minutes at 475, you say to lower the heat to 400 … but how much longer do we cook at the reduced heat before adding the sauce? I cooked it for about 10 minutes longer, but may have slightly overcooked the chicken.
Hey Sharon,
Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! In step 5, you will cook for an additional 3 minutes. Have the best day! xTieghan
This is one of our favourite week-night dinners! As much as I try to avoid repeating the same recipes too frequently, this is one of those dishes that comes together super easily – we always have the ingredients on hand and it’s quick enough to make at the end of a long work day. If that weren’t easy enough, we’ve decided to make a larger batch of sauce the next time we make this so it’s one less step 🙂
We love spice so we add a few extra squeezes of sriracha, and I totally agree with a previous comment – some cashews would be perfect in this!
Hey Courtney! Thank you so much for trying out this recipe, I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Happy Monday ? xTieghan