Sweet and Sour Chicken Balls in Crispy Batter
Sweet and sour chicken balls are an institution in British Chinese takeaways. They are remarkably quick to make at home and taste fantastic.
Preparation is key to getting this recipe right. The cooking is easy, and if you get all your prep done, this dish will go from your cupboard to your table in right around 30 minutes!
Chinese Takeaway Style Sweet and Sour Chicken
The ultimate takeaway treat for us when I was growing up was a Chinese takeaway; it literally happened once a year on Christmas Eve.
For years, I would only order crispy sweet and sour chicken balls or sweet and sour pork balls. This recipe is an ode to my very personal Christmas food recipe, go figure lol!
I still love sweet and sour Chinese takeaway flavours, although I am now much less likely to deep fry the main element.
I have dishes as diverse as sweet and sour tofu, sweet and sour prawns, sweet and sour salmon and some stunning sweet and sour pork chops as well as sweet and sour pork tenderloin!
This recipe is surprisingly quick to cook; it takes right around 30 minutes, which is probably quicker than your delivery driver can get to you!
Your balls will likely be crispier this way too... no, you're a child!
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to fry the chicken in a wok?
No, I use a wok because it offers a good compromise on safety and convenience. The best way to cook this is in a deep fat fryer, but I do not fry often enough to look after one!
A wok has a broad top and a narrow base. This means when you fry, there is LOTS of room for the oil to expand. You can use a saucepan, but be sure not to fill it more than a quarter to a third with oil before frying.
Most importantly, NEVER leave the oil unattended!
How do I know when the oil is at the right temperature?
Buy a sugar thermometer or other thermometer.
Temperature is critical when it comes to deep-frying, too hot and things will burn on the outside and not be cooked in the middle. Too cold, and whatever you are frying will soak up oil rather than frying in oil!
I've been cooking for decades, and even with all of that experience, I get better results with a thermometer!
Is cold and sparkling water really important?
In my testing, yes! You get a crisper and lighter batter with this combination.
I guess the temperature differential between the cold and the hot makes a significant difference, and the bubble adds air, leading to lighter balls.
What is cornflour?
A question often asked by my US readers, cornflour is known as cornstarch in the States.
Can I use the juice from the tinned pineapple?
Yes, absolutely, just make sure you have pineapple chunks in juice and not pineapple chunks in syrup!
Serving Suggestions.
These crispy, sweet and sour chicken balls are often served with plain boiled rice in our house.
Although egg-fried rice is awesome too if you have planned well enough, it does mean some juggling on the stovetop!
Although on occasions I do serve it with my fried potatoes. I'm British and "chips" work with everything, especially if it has a sweet and sour sauce!
It is also great served alongside my stir fried broccoli or asparagus stir fry.
If you are a noodle fiend, then these soy and peanut noodles would also work really well!
Equipment Used
Generally speaking, I do not recommend specific brands of equipment unless I think that it makes a material difference to a recipe. If you have any questions, feel free to shout up in the comments section!
- Wok. You could use a pan or a deep fat fryer.
- Oil thermometer, I use a sugar thermometer.
- Small 15cm (6") saucepan.
- Kitchen knife.
- Chopping board.
- Stovetop.
- Mixing bowls
- Whisk.
- Slotted spoon.
- Kitchen paper.
- A combination of weighing scales, a measuring jug, measuring cups and spoons.
Sweet and Sour Chicken Balls Recipe
Ingredients
- 300 g Chicken Breast 12oz
For the Sweet and Sour Sauce:
- 3 tablespoon Light Soy Sauce
- 1 tablespoon Rice Wine Vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Light Brown Sugar
- 3 tablespoon Tomato Ketchup
- 4 tablespoon Pineapple Juice (juice from the pineapple tin is fine)
- 1 tablespoon Toasted Sesame Oil
- 2 tablespoon Water
- 1 tablespoon Cornflour (cornstarch in the US)
- 1 Small Onion 75g
- 1 Red Pepper
- 100 g Tinned Pineapple Chunks in Juice ½ Cup
- 1 tablespoon Oil
For the Batter:
- 35 g Plain Flour ¼ Cup + 1 tablespoon of Flour to dredge the chicken
- 30 g Cornflour ¼ Cup (cornstarch in the US)
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 100 ml Cold Sparkling Water ⅓ Cup + 1 tablespoon
- Oil (for frying)
Instructions
Preparation:
- Cut the chicken breast into 2cm (¾") cubes. It is important that the chicken is fairly uniform in size.
- Top and tail the onion, then cut it in half lengthways, then peel it. Cut the onion halves into 5mm (¼") strips lengthways.
- Remove the stalk and seeds from the pepper, then cut it into 5mm (¼") thick strips.
- Mix together the brown sugar, sesame oil, pineapple juice, soy sauce, tomato ketchup, and rice wine vinegar in a bowl and set aside.
- If your pineapple chunks are too large, cut them down in size. I usually cut mine into quarters.
Make the Sauce:
- Heat the oil for the sauce in a small (15cm or 6") saucepan over a medium-high heat. Add the onions and pepper and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Pour in the sauce you prepared and reduce the heat to medium, and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Stir together the cornflour and water for the sauce. Pour the cornflour slurry into the sauce and stir it until it thickens, which will take 1-2 minutes.
- Add the pineapple chunks and stir to combine. Set aside and keep warm whilst you prepare the batter and fry the chicken
Make the Batter:
- Whisk together the cornflour, 35g of plain flour, baking powder and salt.
- Pour in the cold sparkling water and whisk to form a batter. It is important that the water is both ice cold and sparkling!
Coat and Fry the Chicken:
- Sprinkle the leftover tablespoon of flour into the chicken and toss to coat. I like to add a pinch of salt here.
- Dip the chicken 6-7 pieces at a time into the batter, then carefully drop them into the hot oil. Fry for 4-5 minutes, turning them with a slotted spoon in oil at 170°C or 340°F, then transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain.Repeat with the remaining chicken. You can keep the chicken balls warm in a low oven if needed.
- Finally, serve with the sauce on the side or poured over the top.
Amazing kids loved it and couldn't get it down them quick enough
This looks soooo good! I love Asian food lately so I need to give this a try. Such pretty photos too!
Like many Brits I love the sweet and sour pork or chicken you get in UK Chinese restaurants, even if it isn't authentic Chinese! I've never made it myself but this sounds tempting. Can I use different vinegar? What kind of vinegar is Chiangking? I don't think I can find that here in Italy!
This sounds delicious! I thought for years that I didn't like sweet and sour chicken as the ones I'd had as takeaways had always been too sweet but then I made it at home and discovered that with a little less sweetness it is a fantastic meal.
This looks soooo good! I love Asian food lately so I need to give this a try. Such pretty photos too!
Thanks Julie.
Like many Brits I love the sweet and sour pork or chicken you get in UK Chinese restaurants, even if it isn't authentic Chinese! I've never made it myself but this sounds tempting. Can I use different vinegar? What kind of vinegar is Chiangking? I don't think I can find that here in Italy!
You can use any vinegar you like, Chinkiang vinegar is a black rice vinegar and typically common in Asian stores, although I do have to travel 320km to get mine 😮 I have heard of many people using balsamic as a sub and I have tested it out, it obviously is not the same as Balsamic is a much more complex flavour. However having said that it is really tasty, you can push towards cider vinegar or wine vinegar but they are much harsher.
This sounds delicious! I thought for years that I didn't like sweet and sour chicken as the ones I'd had as takeaways had always been too sweet but then I made it at home and discovered that with a little less sweetness it is a fantastic meal.
Thanks Corina, I agree sometimes the sweet element can take over and all to often the sour element is too harsh to try and combat that. But done well it is a wonderful dish!
This recipe looks great, but I REALLY love these bowls, Brian!
Thanks Hillary 🙂
This looks so much better than any takeout I've ever had!
Why thank you very much, it tastes great and is really simple 🙂
I love this dish, Brian. It's one of my favourites on your entire blog. That chicken looks so moist.
Cheers Byron, it is a firm favourite with my wife and keeps me in the good books 😀
This looks wonderful! And I'm looking forward to your butter chicken recipe 🙂
Thanks, I do like to rock a 'fake' away every now and then 😀
Looks amazing. I need to experiment more with Asian food. I see all these delicious looking dishes all over the web and it makes me think that there is more than just your local Chinese take out 🙂
Thanks Johlene, I was never much of an Asian style cook in the UK, it was so easy to get from a take away as you say... But since we moved then I have spent many hours in the kitchen playing with ideas and flavours 😀
Brian this looks delicious! My husband was just telling me last night that he was craving Asian food...this dish sounds perfect 🙂 Plus I love the sweet and sour flavor!
Thanks Paige, we love Asian flavours as you can probably tell 😉 Odd really as Inidan was always my go to flavour in the UK but now I crave much more Chinese/South East Asian flavours.
In the US sweet and sour chicken is always breaded and fried and serve with a red sauce on the side but the breading is always so dense that as much as I want to love it I can't get past it. This looks so much better! Adding it to my Chinese cravings file
Ha ha, in the UK 9 times out of 10 it is served in a batter and deep fried, this is much more satisfying to me... However if I do go the deep fried route I usually dust in cornflour (conrnstarch in the US I believe), salt and szechuan pepper and go that way 🙂
I made this about two months ago! It was delicious! In fact, this recipe is why I bought dark soy sauce and it's made our homemade takeout copycat dishes so much better. Thank you!
Thank you so much for letting me know you enjoyed it, it is always great to know that people are making the things I put up on the interweb 😀 Dark Soy is a great addition to a pantry, it does something slightly different to light soy and adds a sweetness and richness to a dish I find.
Sweet and sour chicken balls was one of my favourite chinese take-away dish as a kid. The thick red sauce and heavy battered balls. I loved it!
My palette has grown up in the last 20 years. This dish sounds divine, the wonderful sweet hit with a delicious sour note, real chicken and crunchy capsicums. YUM!!!!
Pinning this 🙂
Thanks Claire, it was never really one of mine but a favourite of my wifes so I had to find a way to remind her of a favourite and also make my belly smile. So this is a bit of a half way house but my wife loves it which is naturally the most important thing 😉
Orange chicken I have never made, but look forward to trying it. I love Asian food and remember eating lots of it in Toronto, not so much in Italy. Although I do occasionally make my own. Looks delicious.
You are the second comment that has called this orange chicken, I genuinely had no idea that is what this is called stateside, it is very moorish and the perfect TV dinner according to fearless stunt wifey 😀
Ah, orange chicken - it was my most favorite growing up, but we never had it homemade. We always ordered it at our local Chinese restaurant and I have such fond memories. I need to add this to my must-make list - sounds like you've created a pretty delicious recipe! Enjoy the time with your guests 🙂
I love comments, you learn something new all of the time I had no idea this was called orange chicken on the other side of the pond. My wife loves this dish it is her favourite so I make it a lot 😉
Hi again, I had to come back because I must have been tired when I wrote that! Orange chicken is something totally different -- meant to say sweet and sour! 🙂 lol
Haha, walecome back, to be honest I would have been none the wiser lets face it recieps stay similar but get called all sorts of things around the world 😉
My adventure in Asian cuisine has begun. I made a peanut sauce last week. This sweet and sour sauce looks like a good one. I'll add it to my list of adventures in Asian cuisine! I always thought all you needed was vinegar and sugar. Shows what I know about it! I love the chicken and veg too! Over rice! Yum:)
I love Asian food, it is largely sweet, sour and salty, although you will occasionally find hit in there too... But there is so much more flavour and personality in different Asian Vinegars and 'Wines' that change a dish so much 🙂
That looks delicious! We actually have a pretty decent Chinese restaurant about 5 minutes from us, but when I get the itch to make it at home, I'll be back to this recipe!!