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Get ready for crispy Honey Sesame Chicken that’s better than take out and sooooooo easy to make. You’ll fall in love with these crispy chicken pieces that are coated in a sweet and sticky sesame chicken sauce. Kid approved!
I love takeout Chinese sesame chicken! But, it can be a hassle to place an order and pick it up on a busy weeknight. So, I decided to start making my favorite takeout recipes at home. It took some experimenting, but I’m confident you’ll be thrilled with the results!
Why You’ll Love This Sesame Chicken Recipe
- Better Than Takeout: It took awhile, but I got this recipe to taste better than my favorite takeout place! My kids ask for this dinner all the time and I find myself ordering takeout less and less.
- Sesame Chicken Sauce: For real – it’s all about this sauce! You’ll want to put this sticky, spicy, sweet sauce on everything once you try it. An added benefit? This sauce makes the kids eat almost any veggie I put in front of them!
- Kid-Friendly: Let’s face it, sometimes kids don’t love trying new things. But this recipe is guaranteed to get your kids excited to eat dinner! Even the pickiest eaters fall in love with this sticky sesame chicken after just one bite!
What You’ll Need
With just a few simple ingredients, you’ll have this super tasty Chinese sesame chicken on the table! Scroll down to the recipe card for exact amounts.
For the Chicken
- Chicken Breasts: We’ll be using boneless, skinless chicken breasts.
- Eggs
- Flour
- Cornstarch
- Oil
For the Sesame Chicken Sauce
- Honey
- Soy Sauce: Grab a low sodium soy sauce or tamari sauce so you can control the salt level of the sauce.
- Sesame Oil
- Rice Wine Vinegar
- Brown Sugar
- Garlic: Fresh garlic will give this sauce a great kick – don’t skip it!
- Sesame Seeds
How to Make Honey Sesame Chicken
- Prep: Crack your eggs into a bowl and stir them with a fork until they’re blended. Combine flour and cornstarch on a plate and stir them together until they’re incorporated. You’ve made a dredging station!
- Dredge: Heat about 3-inches of oil in a deep frying pan. Dip each piece of chicken in the egg mixture and then dip it into the flour mixture. Add chicken pieces to the hot oil and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy. Allow the grease from the chicken to drain on paper towels.
- Mix: In the meantime, prepare the sesame chicken sauce. Set a pan over medium heat and add in the honey, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, and garlic. Whisk everything together to combine. Bring the sauce to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Continue to simmer for 1 to 2 minutes, or until it begins to slightly thicken.
- Serve: Remove the sauce from the heat and pour the sauce over the chicken. Garnish the chicken with sesame seeds and serve.
Tips and Tricks
These tips will take your crispy honey sesame chicken from average to better than takeout!
- Sauce Consistency: If you want a thicker sauce, combine ½ tablespoon cornstarch with ½ tablespoon cold water; whisk to combine and then whisk into the sauce. Cook for a minute, or until heated through.
- Amp Up the Flavor: For even more flavor, you can add scallions or chopped fresh parsley before serving.
- White vs Dark Meat: Both chicken breasts and chicken thighs work in this sesame chicken recipe! Cut them into the same cubes, and just add a minute longer for frying.
- Spice It Up: If you want to make it a little spicy, add in a bit of sweet chili sauce or red pepper flakes!
What to Serve With Sesame Chicken
I think it’s obvious to say that I love to serve this over long grain white rice, like Basmati or Jasmine (garlic butter parmesan rice is great too!), and a side of steamed or roasted veggies. I like to toss the veggies right in the sauce with the chicken, too!
Here are a few less traditional options:
- Serve with rice noodle and steamed veggies.
- Serve with quinoa and veggies.
- Serve over zoodles.
- Sub the rice for cauliflower rice.
- Serve over or next to a veggie fried rice dish.
- Plate and insert a toothpick into each chicken bite. Then, serve them as an appetizer.
- Serve over an Asian inspired salad mix.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
- If you end up with any leftovers, all you need to do is refrigerate it in an airtight container for 3-5 days.
- When you’re ready to reheat, you may need to thin your sauce a bit. Simply add a splash of soy sauce and rice wine vinegar and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Allow it to simmer until the chicken bites are cooked through.
- One of the very best things about this crispy honey sesame chicken is how quickly and easily it comes together. This makes it perfect for meal prepping. Whenever I make this, I’ll double the recipe and save half for another night. Simply allow it to come to room temperature, and then store in an airtight, freezer safe container for about 3 months. Just don’t forget to label your container! Then, take it out and defrost when you’re ready to eat it.
More Easy Chicken Recipes
Crispy Honey Sesame Chicken
Crispy Honey Sesame Chicken that's better than take out and so easy to make! You're going to love these crispy chicken pieces coated in a sweet and garlicky sauce and topped with sesame seeds.
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes,
- 2 eggs, beaten
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- oil for frying
For the Honey Sauce
- ⅓ cup honey
- ¼ cup low sodium soy sauce or Tamari sauce
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup sesame seeds, for garnish
Instructions
- Place eggs in a bowl and stir with a fork until blended.
- Combine flour and cornstarch in a plate and stir together until incorporated.
- Heat about 3-inches of oil in a deep frying pan.
- Dip each piece of chicken in the egg mixture and then dip it into flour mixture.
- Add chicken pieces to the hot oil and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy.
- Drain chicken on paper towels.
- In the meantime, prepare the honey sauce.
- Set a pan over medium heat; add in honey, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, and garlic. Whisk to combine.
- Bring sauce to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer and continue to cook for 1 to 2 minutes, or until slightly thickened.
- Remove from heat and pour sauce over chicken.
- Garnish with sesame seeds and serve.
Notes
If you want a thicker sauce, combine ½ tablespoon cornstarch with ½ tablespoon cold water; whisk to combine and then whisk into the sauce. Cook for a minute, or until heated through.
Nutrition
Serving: 4ounces | Calories: 441kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 154mg | Sodium: 698mg | Potassium: 554mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 153IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 115mg | Iron: 3mg
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
Did you make a recipe? Leave a rating
I came across this recipe ..we Have been trying to find a recipe that tastes like Our chicken at our Favorite restuarant (to no avail) Until i came across Your recipe it is absolutely Amazing i could have this every night that is how good it is…Thanks for Sharing your recipe
Thank YOU! I’m very glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Hi
Can i precook the chicken night before?
Sure. You can cook the chicken beforehand, and then prepare the sauce when you’re ready to serve.
The soy sauce really threw it off. Seemed really really strong. Everything thing else turned out perfect.
Amazing. I made it for the first time tonight and even my son who eats nothing but bagel bites loved it. He ate seconds! It was super good!! Thank you for the wonderful addition to dinner.
That’s great to hear! I’m very glad everyone enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Everything turned out wonderfully but the sauce I couldn’t get it to thicken up! Not sure what I did wrong
Good stuff Katerina. Easy enough for a non-Culinary person that only takes about 45 min to put together.
We really liked it but I don’t think it needs the flour.
Also, the sauce was very runny. I think I would add some cornstarch to the sauce next time, omit the flour, and roast the garlic and sesame seeds before adding.
Thank you!