This Sweet and Spicy Chicken recipe will quickly become a family favorite. It’s easy to prepare and can be served with a side or on a salad.
The chicken has a delicious combination of sweet and spicy. We love eating it with coconut rice or fried rice on the side, in tacos, or in chicken lettuce wraps. It’s juicy on the inside with a flavorful, caramelized outside.
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Sweet and Spicy Chicken Ingredients
All you need to make this sweet and spicy chicken is chicken breast and the marinade ingredients. Feel free to swap out the ingredients in the marinade for whatever your family prefers.
- Chicken: We used about one and a half pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breasts. If you need more than that, simply increase the marinade ingredients.
- Low Sodium Soy Sauce: The low sodium soy sauce is the main ingredient in the marinade. It adds a savory flavor, and the salt tenderizes the meat. We chose the low-sodium option to prevent the marinade from becoming too salty.
- Olive Oil: The olive oil adds moisture and helps prevent the chicken from sticking to the pan. You could also use vegetable oil, canola oil, or peanut oil.
- Sesame Oil: A little sesame oil adds so much flavor to the marinade!
- Brown Sugar: The brown sugar adds a sweetness that balances out the salt from the soy sauce. It also aids in caramelization on the outside of the chicken while cooking. You could also use honey or granulated sugar.
- Minced Garlic: We used minced garlic to add flavor. You could substitute the minced garlic with garlic powder.
- Crushed red pepper flakes: The crushed red pepper flakes bring the heat. You can add more or less depending on how spicy you want the chicken to be. Another option would be to use sriracha sauce.
How To Make Sweet and Spicy Chicken
There are three easy steps to making sweet and spicy chicken. Prepare the chicken breasts, marinate them, and then cook the chicken.
Preparation: Trim the boneless, skinless chicken breasts and place them between two sheets of parchment paper. Use a mallet or rolling pin to flatten the chicken breasts to an even thickness. Place the chicken in a gallon-sized zip-top bag.
Marinade: Mix together the remaining ingredients to create the marinade. Pour it on the chicken breasts in the bag, zip the top shut, turn to coat the chicken evenly, and place the bag in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Cook: Remove the chicken from the bag and discard the marinade. Cook the chicken in a greased cast iron grill pan or skillet over medium heat for 12-16 minutes or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165˚F.
What Others Want To Know
The most important thing to getting juicy chicken breast is not overcooking your chicken. Use a meat thermometer and check the thickest part of the chicken breast. Chicken breasts need to cook to an internal temperature of 165˚F. Additional tips include flattening the chicken breasts to an even thickness before cooking them, allowing the chicken to rest for 5 minutes before slicing, and cooking the chicken over medium heat.
Sweet and Spicy Chicken can be served with mashed potatoes, rice, or pasta. It would be delicious on top of fettuccine alfredo or even cauliflower rice. For sides, you could serve oven-roasted veggies, boiled corn on the cob, or tomato cucumber salad.
Marinate the chicken breasts as directed in the recipe. Preheat the air fryer to 380˚F. Lightly grease the air fryer basket before adding the chicken breasts. Cook at 380˚F for 7 minutes. Turn the chicken breasts over and continue cooking for an additional 5-7 minutes or until it reaches an internal temperature of 165˚F.
More Recipes Like This One
- This Cilantro Lime Chicken is delicious on rice or in tacos!
- Honey Garlic Chicken is a family favorite!
- Serve Sesame Chicken over rice or noodles.
- We make this Chipotle Chicken for tacos, burritos, and nachos.
Sweet and Spicy Chicken
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Ingredients
- 1 ½ lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoon sesame oil
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes add more or less as desired
Instructions
- Place the chicken breasts between two pieces of parchment paper and flatten them with a mallet or rolling pin. Transfer them to a gallon-size ziptop bag.
- Whisk together the remaining ingredients in a small bowl to make the marinade.
- Pour the marinade over the chicken breasts. Seal the bag and turn to coat. Place the chicken in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Remove the chicken from the bag and discard the marinade.
- Cook the chicken on the stovetop over medium heat in a greased grill pan or skillet for 12-16 minutes, turning the chicken halfway through cooking, until it reaches an internal temperature of 165˚F. (See notes for additional cooking methods.)
Notes
Cooking Methods
- Air Fryer: Preheat to 380˚F. Lightly grease the basket. Cook the chicken at 380˚F for 7 minutes, flip the chicken over and continue cooking for an additional 5-7 minutes.
- Oven: Preheat to 400˚F. Place the chicken breasts on a greased baking sheet. Bake the chicken 400˚F for 18-23 minutes.
- Grill: Preheat the grill to medium heat. Grease the grill gates and add the chicken breasts. Cover and cook for 6 minutes. Turn the chicken over and cook for an additional 6-8 minutes.
