Sweet-Sour Chicken Recipe From the Wok

Why You’ll Love This this Sweet-Sour Chicken from the Wok

This sweet and sour chicken comes together in just one wok, which means fewer dishes to wash and more time to actually enjoy your dinner instead of standing at the sink wondering why you thought cooking was a good idea.

The sauce gets perfectly glossy and thick thanks to that cornstarch magic, coating every piece of tender chicken and crisp bell pepper in a balance of tangy-sweet goodness that’ll make your taste buds do a little happy dance.

Plus, with pineapple chunks adding those bursts of tropical sweetness and scallions bringing that fresh bite at the end, you get all those classic takeout flavors without having to change out of your pajamas or tip the delivery guy.

Ingredients List

This sweet and sour chicken recipe keeps things invigoratingly simple with just nine ingredients that you probably already have lurking somewhere in your kitchen.

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 lbs skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch strips
• 2 tablespoons ketchup
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 (20 ounce) can pineapple chunks in juice, undrained
• 2 large red bell peppers, cut into thin strips
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

• 6 scallions, cut into 1-inch pieces (green onions)
• Lean protein power: Skinless chicken breast keeps things light while still giving you that satisfying protein hit your body craves
• Veggie boost: Those red bell peppers aren’t just pretty, they’re packed with vitamin C and add a lovely crunch
• Natural sweetness: The pineapple and honey combo means you’re getting natural sugars instead of relying on processed stuff
• Sodium watch: Keep an eye on the soy sauce if you’re watching your salt intake, though three tablespoons spread across the whole dish isn’t too crazy
• Simple swaps: You can easily use low-sodium soy sauce or cut back on the amount if your taste buds prefer things a little less salty

Step by Step Directions



This sweet and sour chicken comes together in one wok with a simple cook-and-stir method that takes about 15 minutes from start to finish.

• Heat your wok: Preheat wok over medium heat and add the vegetable oil, heating until hot but not smoking.
• Cook the chicken: Add chicken strips and cook 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until no pink remains.
• Add the sweet elements: Stir in ketchup, honey, pineapple with its juice, and red bell pepper strips.
• Let it bubble: Cook 5 to 7 minutes until the sauce begins to boil.
• Make the thickener: In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce and cornstarch until smooth.
• Thicken the sauce: Add the soy sauce mixture to the bubbling wok and cook 2 to 3 more minutes until sauce thickens.
• Finish with scallions: Toss in the scallions and stir until everything is well coated and heated through.

While this recipe uses a wok, having the right Indian cooking equipment can help you explore other delicious Asian-inspired dishes in your home kitchen.

Substitutions and Variations

• Try different sweeteners: Maple syrup or brown sugar can replace the honey, though you might want to start with less since brown sugar is sweeter than honey.
• Add more veggies: Broccoli florets, sliced carrots, or water chestnuts for crunch all make great additions.

Just remember that harder vegetables like carrots need a head start in the wok.

Additional Things to Serve With This Dish

This sweet and tangy chicken practically begs for some good companions on the plate.

• Steamed jasmine or basmati rice – because honestly, where else is all that gorgeous sauce going to go? The rice soaks up every drop like a delicious little sponge.
• Lo mein or chow mein noodles – if you’re feeling like mixing things up from the usual rice routine, these noodles turn this into a completely different meal.
• Simple stir-fried vegetables – think snow peas, bok choy, or those crispy green beans that snap when you bite them. They add color and keep things from getting too heavy.
• Egg rolls or pot stickers – okay, maybe this is overkill, but sometimes you just want the full takeout encounter at home, right?
• A light cucumber salad – something cool and crisp cuts through all that sweet sauce beautifully. Just slice some cucumbers thin, toss with rice vinegar and a pinch of salt.
• Fried rice – especially if you’ve got day-old rice sitting in the fridge looking sad and forgotten. Two birds, one delicious stone.

Cooking Tips & Tricks (Chef’s Notes)

After making this dish a few times, you pick up some tricks that make everything go smoother.

• Cut your chicken into even pieces – sounds obvious, but when half your chicken strips are thick and the other half are thin, you end up with some pieces that are perfect and others that are either raw or chewy. Nobody wants to play chicken roulette at dinner time.
• Don’t skip the cornstarch slurry – that mixture of soy sauce and cornstarch is what transforms your sauce from watery disappointment into glossy, restaurant-quality perfection. Mix it really well though, because cornstarch lumps are like little flavor-stealing demons.
• Have everything prepped before you start cooking – this dish moves fast once you get going, and there’s nothing worse than frantically chopping scallions while your chicken overcooks in the background. Mise en place isn’t just fancy chef talk, it’s survival.
• Don’t drain that pineapple juice – I know it seems like a lot of liquid, but that juice is doing heavy lifting in the flavor department. Plus it helps create enough sauce to coat everything properly.
• Add the scallions at the very end – they’re supposed to stay bright green and slightly crisp, not turn into sad, wilted afterthoughts. Thirty seconds in that hot wok is plenty.
• Taste and adjust – some pineapples are sweeter than others, so you might need an extra splash of soy sauce or vinegar to balance things out. Trust your taste buds over the recipe.

Nutritional Facts

Based on the recipe serving 4 people, here’s the nutritional breakdown per serving:

• Calories: 340-380 per serving
• Protein: 37-40g (excellent source of lean protein from chicken breast)
• Carbohydrates: 28-32g (primarily from pineapple and sauce ingredients)
• Fat: 8-10g (mostly from cooking oil)
• Fiber: 3-4g (from bell peppers and pineapple)
• Sugar: 22-25g (natural sugars from pineapple plus added honey)
• Sodium: 800-900mg (mainly from soy sauce – about 35% daily value)
• Vitamin C: 180-200mg (over 200% daily value, thanks to red bell peppers)
• Vitamin A: 15-20% daily value (from red peppers)
• Potassium: 600-700mg (from chicken, pineapple, and vegetables)
• Iron: 8-10% daily value
• Calcium: 4-6% daily value

The dish is naturally gluten-free if you use tamari instead of regular soy sauce, and it’s packed with antioxidants from the colorful vegetables and pineapple.

Fun “Did You Know?”

Beyond its impressive nutritional profile, sweet and sour chicken carries fascinating stories that’ll surprise you.

Did you know that this beloved dish isn’t actually traditional Chinese cuisine? It’s an American-Chinese creation from the 1960s, designed for Western palates.

The original Chinese version uses much less sugar and features black vinegar instead of ketchup. Pineapple wasn’t included in early recipes either—that tropical twist came later.

I find it amazing that what we consider “authentic” Chinese food often reflects immigrant adaptation.

This dish perfectly represents how cuisines evolve when cultures blend, creating something entirely new yet deliciously familiar.