This easy recipe for sweet and sour chicken is made with a delicious sweet and sour plum sauce, healthy stir fried vegetables and slices of fresh, juicy plums. If you prefer your sweet and sour chicken without pineapple then this plum chicken recipe is definitely worth a try!!
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👩🏻🍳 Why make this recipe
A super easy, no fuss recipe thats perfect any night of the week. This sweet and sour chicken can be on the table in just 30 minutes and many of the ingredients can be changed to suit different tastes.
🥘 Ingredients
This recipe makes enough sweet and sour chicken to serve 2 people (or 4 starter-sized portions):
For the sweet and sour plum sauce:
- 2 tablespoon Tomato ketchup
- 2 tablespoon Plum sauce (shop bought)
- 1 tablespoon Honey
- 2 tablespoon Sweet chilli sauce
- 1 tablespoon Rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Soy sauce
For the sweet and sour chicken:
- ½ tablespoon oil
- 1 Clove garlic finely chopped
- 2 Chicken breasts cubed (400g)
- 1 Yellow bell pepper (150g)
- 1 Red bell pepper (150g)
- 2 Medium tomatoes roughly chopped (150g)
- 100g plums stones removed and quartered
- 3 Spring onions - green parts sliced (optional)
- Sprinkle of chilli flakes (optional)
Ingredient notes
Measurements: See the recipe card below for full ingredients and instructions. Also, use the toggle button to switch between metric and USA measurements.
Chicken: Swap in for your preferred meat; try sweet and sour pork or hot and sour fish soup made with prawns and noodles.
Plums: For a more traditional version swap the plums for pineapple.
Vegetables: Add more vegetables or swap for different ones like carrots and onions. For a vegetarian sweet and sour recipe, leave out the meat and bulk up with extra veg; try with baby corn and chunks of courgette.
Toppings: Spring onions and chilli flakes are optional,. You could also try topping with sesame seeds or chopped cashew nuts.
🔪 Step by step instructions
- Make the sweet and sour sauce by mixing together tomato ketchup, plum sauce, honey, sweet chilli sauce, rice vinegar and soy sauce.
- In a large pan fry off the chicken, peppers and tomatoes
- Add chopped, fresh plums to the pan then pour over the sweet and sour sauce.
- Simmer then serve topped with chilli flakes and chopped spring onions.
💭 Expert tips
Fruit: To keep the fruit chunky in the finished dish make sure to add the plums (or other preferred fruit) just before the sauce. This will allow the fruit to be heated but still maintain its shape. Over cooking will cause the fruit to soften and even dissolve into the sauce.
Simmering: Simmer the dish gently and until just warmed through before serving. Over heating or boiling will ruin the sauce.
❓ Frequently asked questions
For a dish that is similar to that in Western Chinese restaurants, the sauce is usually made with vinegar, tomato ketchup and soy sauce. For this recipe I also included a couple of tablespoons of jarred plum sauce to add to the sweetness and enhance the flavour of the fresh plums.
For a sweet and sour chicken that is Hong Kong style you will just need to alter the way the chicken is cooked. In this recipe the chicken is stir fried in a little oil. Hong Kong sweet and sour chicken uses crispy chicken made by coating the raw chicken in a batter or in breadcrumbs and then deep frying until golden.
Store in an air tight container for up to 3 days in the fridge or 3 months on the freezer. Make sure the dish is fully cooled before storing in the fridge or freezer. When reheating make sure the sweet and sour chicken is thoroughly defrosted first and then heat through in a large pan or wok until piping hot.
Plums leftover? Try them in a delicious Plum and rhubarb crumble.
🍱 Other Asian recipes
- Homemade Sushi Rolls
- Thai Green Curry Recipe
- Dragon Chicken
- Thai Red Curry Recipe
- Sesame Seed Chicken
- Chinese Prawns Recipe
If you've tried this recipe, let me know what you think by leaving a star rating in the recipe card or comment section below. I always appreciate your feedback! You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram or Sign up to my email list!
This post was first published in September 2019. Updated in October 2022 with an improved images, step by step instructions and expert tips.
📖 Recipe
Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
For the sweet and sour sauce
- 2 tablespoon Tomato Ketchup
- 2 tablespoon Plum sauce
- 1 tablespoon Honey
- 2 tablespoon Sweet chilli sauce
- 1 tablespoon Rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Soy sauce
For the plum chicken:
- ½ tablespoon oil
- 1 Clove garlic finely chopped
- 2 Chicken breasts cubed 400g
- 1 Yellow bell pepper 150g
- 1 Red bell pepper 150g
- 2 Medium tomatoes roughly chopped 150g
- 100 g plums stones removed and quartered
For the toppings:
- 3 Spring onions sliced optional
- Sprinkle of chilli flakes optional
To serve:
- Rice optional
Instructions
To make the sweet and sour sauce:
- In a small bowl mix together tomato ketchup, plum sauce, honey, sweet chilli sauce, rice vinegar and soy sauce. Stir together well then put to one side.2 tablespoon Tomato Ketchup, 2 tablespoon Plum sauce, 1 tablespoon Honey, 2 tablespoon Sweet chilli sauce, 1 tablespoon Rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon Soy sauce
To make the sweet and sour chicken:
- Place a large pan or wok on a medium heat and add ½ tablespoon oil. When the oil is hot add the garlic and cubed raw chicken. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until browned all over.½ tablespoon oil, 1 Clove garlic finely chopped, 2 Chicken breasts cubed
- Keeping the pan on a medium heat add the red peppers, yellow peppers and tomatoes to the chicken. Stir fry for a couple of minutes until the vegetables start to go soft and the chicken is cooked through.1 Yellow bell pepper, 1 Red bell pepper, 2 Medium tomatoes roughly chopped
- Next add the freshly sliced plums and the sweet and sour sauce made earlier. Mix together well and bring to a gentle simmer. Simmer for a minute or so until heated through.100 g plums
- Serve up in bowls (with rice if desired) and top with sliced spring onions and chilli flakes.3 Spring onions sliced, Sprinkle of chilli flakes, Rice
Video
Nutrition
Notes
David
Really delicious. After one try following the recipe (which I originally found elsewhere and puts the chilli flakes in the sauce and then coats the plums in it) I doubled the quantity of plums and tomatoes and added a teaspoon of cornflour to thicken the sauce. Even better! (My partner said the raw plums were inedible because they were too hard and sour. One taste of this dish and she said they were lovely!)