How to make tasty, Chinese fakeaway sweet and sour chicken. Healthier and cheaper than the takeaway, with a cooking time of just under 10 minutes.
*Post updated June 2026
The chicken in my recipe isn't coated in cornflour, so it isn't crispy, but it is still delicious. 😋
Other than chicken, the sweet and sour sauce can be used to make sweet and sour prawns (shrimp) or pork.
Recipe top tips!
- Make sure to gather and prep all your ingredients before you start cooking, because once you begin, it comes together quickly!
- When stir-frying, always ensure the oil in your wok is hot.
- Don't leave any of the sauce ingredients out.
Ingredients
- skinless chicken breasts
- cornflour (corn starch)
- vegetable oil
- onion
- red bell pepper
- green bell pepper
- garlic
- pineapple from a tin - keep the juice for later
- spring (green) onion - to garnish
Sweet and sour sauce
- cornflour
- brown sugar
- Lee and Perins Worcestershire sauce
- juice from the tin of pineapple
- red wine vinegar
- tomato ketchup
- Ketjap Manis (Indonesian sweet soy sauce)
- dried red chilli flakes
- white pepper
If you enjoy this and have a taste for spicy food, you're bound to love my Kung Pao Chicken recipe.
As a starter course, you could serve Pork Yuk Sung (Chinese lettuce wraps), also known as san choy bow, that you'll find on a Chinese restaurant menu.
Have you tried this recipe? Please leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating in the recipe card below!
Yield: 4
Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe
A simple, sweet and sour chicken recipe that also works perfectly with prawns or pork.
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 10 MinTotal time: 20 Min
Ingredients
- 2 skinless chicken fillets - cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil - divided
- 1 large onion - cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 red bell pepper - cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 green bell pepper - cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 fat cloves of garlic - finely chopped
- One 425g tin of pineapple chunks in juice (260g when well drained). Keep the juice for the sauce.
- Optional to garnish - a few spring (green) onions - topped, tailed and thinly sliced
For the sauce - mix together in a jug
- 1 heaped tablespoon cornflour (corn starch)
- 1½ tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 120 ml of the pineapple juice
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 3 heaped tablespoons tomato ketchup
- 2 heaped tablespoons Ketjap Manis (Indonesian sweet soy sauce)
- a big pinch of dried red chilli flakes
- a big pinch of white pepper
Instructions
- Gather and prepare all the ingredients, then make the sauce by mixing them in a jug.
- When you’re ready to start cooking, heat some oil in a wok or large frying pan. Toss in the chicken and stir-fry for a few minutes until it’s nearly cooked through, then take it out and set it aside — no worries, we will finish cooking it later.
- Wipe the pan clean and pour in another tablespoon of oil to heat. When it’s hot, toss in the onions and stir-fry for a couple of minutes, then add the peppers. Keep stir-frying for another few minutes, then add the garlic—just be careful not to let it burn.
- Now add the chicken back in, along with the pineapple chunks, and stir-fry until the chicken is fully cooked.
- Stir the sauce, as the cornflour and sugar will have settled to the bottom of the jug, then pour it into the wok. Stir-fry until everything is piping hot. You can add a little more pineapple juice (or a splash of water) if the sauce is too thick. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
- Sprinkle over the sliced spring onions and serve right away with boiled or fried egg rice.
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Jan