Sweet and Sour Chicken Bake

Chinese Takeout at Home

I came up with this Sweet and Sour Chicken bake out of desperation for Chinese takeout 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 it.

Duck Sauce

Duck Sauce is a sweet and sour sauce. I use this brand from New York that is called Golds Sweet and Sour Duck Sauce, but 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, however. 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 but 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 apply 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, however, you can serve the sauce on the side of the baked chicken tenders as well. But give this 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 perfectly. I sometimes make extra rice so that I can use the day old rice to make my Bacon Fried Rice recipe.

Looking for more Asian Takeout at Home recipes? The Easy Chicken and Peapods and Taiwanese Pork should be just what you’re looking for.