Sticky Sweet Chilli Chicken

Sticky Sweet Chilli Chicken is quick, easy & delicious. The perfect midweek meal that packs great flavour & is on the table within minutes. 

What is Sticky Sweet Chilli Chicken?

This recipe not only reminds me of my uni days, but it also reminds me of my lovely friend Zoe. We lived in the same halls at university and we would often cook meals together. Baked Sweet & Sour Pork was one of our favourites as well as this chicken.

I think we found the original recipe for this in a cookbook one of us had. Unfortunately I can’t remember which book; but we have both adapted the recipe over the years.

So what is it? Sticky Sweet Chilli Chicken is chicken coated in a delicious, sticky and mildly spiced glaze. I say glaze because it coats the chicken rather than being a sauce.

The perfect quick midweek meal

We all have those nights when you don’t have a lot of time but you still want a delicious homecooked meal. This Sticky Sweet Chilli Chicken is the perfect recipe.

Even with the marinating time, this is still a super quick meal to make.

To make it even quicker and easier, you can use jars of minced ginger and garlic. These are staples in my kitchen and I am not ashamed to say it!

They are great because you don’t have to waste time peeling the ginger and garlic. Peeling garlic is one of my least favourite kitchen jobs so I chose anything that gets me away from this!

Which cut of chicken is best to use?

You can use breast of thigh meat for this recipe; either work really well.

I tend to use thighs a lot in my cooking because they tend to not dry out as easily when cooking. However this Sticky Sweet Chilli Chicken cooks so quickly, breast works just as well.

How spicy is this sticky sweet chilli chicken?

This is quite a mild dish and should suit most people’s palates. Sweet chilli sauce has a mild warmth instead of a fiery heat.

If you do like your food a bit spicy, you can always add more sweet chilli sauce or even add a finely diced chilli.

If you’re making this recipe for children or someone that is really sensitive to spice; you might want to add less sweet chilli and replace it with ketchup.

Which Sweet Chilli Sauce is recommended to use?

I use my Sweet Chilli Jam because I always have a jar of it in the fridge.

If you didn’t have this, you can use your favourite shop bought chilli sauce. Chilli sauces can vary in heat, so if you are using a brand you haven’t tried before, I recommend tasting it first!

You can then adjust how much you want to add depending on how spicy it is.

What to serve this sticky Sweet Chilli Chicken with

I absolutely love to serve this chicken with Sticky Rice. It is my go-to rice for any Asian food. If you didn’t want to use sticky rice, Jasmine or long grain rice would also work well. 

As well as rice, I like to serve some simple steamed broccoli alongside the chicken. It is also quite nice to serve some prawn crackers on the side – make it feel like a takeaway!

When it comes to serving, I like to scatter over some sesame seeds and sliced spring onions. These provide extra flavour and crunch to the finished dish.

Sticky Sweet Chilli cooking steps

This really couldn’t be easier, there are just a few easy steps to follow. Full instructions are in the recipe card further down.

1. Cut your chicken and add to a bowl with all of the marinating ingredients. Put it in the fridge while you get the rice on to cook
2. Prepare your rice and get it on to cook. Prepare your broccoli (or other veg of choice) as well as slicing your spring onion for garnish
3. Have a quick cup of tea/load the dishwasher/stop the kids bickering
4. Heat a frying pan over a medium heat and tip the chicken and marinate into the pan. Cook for 4-5 minutes before turning and cooking for another 4-5 minutes
5. Spoon your rice into bowls and top with the chicken, vegetables and garnish. Easy

Be careful, the glaze can spit

When you are cooking the chicken, be careful as the glaze can spit. If this starts to happen, you just need to turn the heat down a little bit.

This might not be the dinner you want to cook straight after you have cleaned you hob because there is always the risk of a little bit of splattering.

The glaze spits because it has a high viscosity – simply put because it is thick and sticky! It doesn’t spit a crazy amount, but I did just want to mention it as you don’t want to get splattered with hot glaze.

A naturally gluten free meal

One of the reasons we made this recipe so often at uni (apart from it being tasty) was because it is naturally gluten free. Zoe is a Coeliac so it was always an added bonus when we could make and eat the same meal.

Obviously you just need to check the soy sauce you’re using is gluten free because not all are.

How to make this chicken vegetarian and vegan

This recipe is really simple to make vegetarian or vegan. Obviously you need to swap the chicken; but the rest you can keep as it is.

Instead of chicken, use your favourite meat replacement protein. You should look for the chicken style pieces that aren’t breaded for this recipe.

You could also use tofu if you prefer. I would recommend using firm tofu and pressing it to get as much moisture out of it as possible.

Other recipes you might like

• Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken
• Baked Sweet & Sour Chicken
• Chicken Chow Mein
• Korean Chicken Wings
• Ancho Chilli Chicken

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