May 7, 2023thetipsyhousewife
Sweet and Sour Chicken Bake
I came up with this Sweet and Sour Chicken bake out of desperation for Chinese take out in rural Michigan when we are at our second home. Living in a rural town, you get creative with what you cook and eat, especially when cravings from back home in Chicago strike. This recipe for Sweet and Sour Chicken Bake uses frozen chicken tenders, a jar of duck sauce, soy sauce and some veggies. It comes together very quickly and you do not need good cooking skills to make this.
Duck Sauce
Duck Sauce is a sweet and sour sauce. I use this brand that is from New York that is called Golds Sweet and Sour Duck Sauce, There are many brands in the grocery store in the Asian food aisle that you can use. This sauce is thick and tangy and makes this dish so delicious. If you absolutely cannot find duck sauce, you can improvise and use a jelly or jam that is orange or apricot and thin it out with some water. I do see a lot of Duck Sauces on Amazon as well.
Chicken Tenders
The brand of chicken tenders I use is from Aldi. They are in the frozen food section and they are in a blue bag. I like this brand because they are very affordable, but the chicken pieces are large and make this dish great. Any brand of white meat chicken tenders will do. There are many great brands. Use what you can afford, as this dish will be delicious either way.
The Veggies
I use red peppers and onions. The beauty of this recipe is that you can use any veggies you like. This is what I had on hand and it was simple not to have to chop a bunch of veggies. You can add broccoli, more peppers, tomatoes and even pineapple chunks. Pro tip, just be sure that all your veggies are rough chopped to the same size so they cook evenly.
The Finished Product
You will see in the full recipe below that I bake the sauce on the pre baked chicken. I love how the sauce gets sticky and coats the chicken. If you want super duper crispy chicken, you can serve the sauce on the side of the baked chicken tenders as well. But give the baking method a try at least once, as I have a feeling you will love it.
The Rice
I love cooking my rice in my instant pot because it comes out perfect. I sometimes make extra rice so that I can use the day old rice to make my Bacon Fried Rice recipe.
Yield: 6 servings
Sweet and Sour Chicken Bake
This sweet and sour chicken bake will have all your Chinese take out cravings cured. This recipe uses frozen, breaded chicken tenders, a jar of duck sauce and some veggies. This dish is perfect for a weeknight meal and makes great leftovers.
Ingredients
- 6 to 8 frozen, breaded chicken tenders. I use the blue bag ones from Aldi
- 2 cups of duck sauce (more info about duck sauce and where to buy, explained in the post)
- 2 tablespoons (approximately) of soy sauce
- 1 large red pepper, rough chopped
- 1 medium size yellow onion, rough chopped
- *any other veggies can be added to this
- 2 teaspoons of garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon of celery salt
- 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne (optional)
- black pepper
- cooked white rice for serving
- 2 tablespoons of butter and a tablespoon of sesame oil (you can sub another oil if you prefer)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425 to 450 degrees. Every oven is different so adjust your cooking temp to your oven.
- Add the chicken tenders to a baking dish.
- Bake for about 25 minutes, or until the bottom of the tenders are crispy and making a sizzling sound.
- While the tenders bake add your butter and oil to a skillet, add your veggies and sauté for about 12 minutes or untl getting soft and tender. Add the soy sauce and sauté for a minute or two. Season to taste with the garlic powder, celery salt, cayenne and black pepper. Sauté for another five minutes.
- Add the duck sauce, stir well to combine and make smooth. Bring to a simmer and simmer on low for 5 to 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- Pull the tenders from the oven and carefully flip over. Pour the duck sauce mixture over the tenders. Return to oven and bake another 15 minutes or so. Pull out and let rest 10 minutes. Serve with rice.
