Sesame Chicken

This Chinese restaurant-inspired sesame chicken recipe is made with pieces of crispy battered chicken tossed in a deliciously sweet sesame sauce.

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Sesame chicken is a Chinese-inspired recipe that’s sweet, sticky, and packed full of flavor. So easy to make, you simply coat the tender chicken pieces in batter, deep fry them until crispy, and smother them in a savory sesame sauce.

Sesame Chicken Ingredients

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The crispy fried chicken is perfectly coated in a sweet and savory sauce that is bursting with flavor.

The sesame seeds add a subtle nuttiness to the dish that perfectly complements the savory sauce.

With each bite, you’ll experience the delightful crunch of the chicken, followed by the delicious taste of the sauce.

You’ll need:

For The Sauce:

• 1½ tablespoons of sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon of garlic paste
• ½ teaspoon of ginger paste
• 1½ tablespoons of cornstarch
• ½ cup of water
• ⅓ cup of soy sauce, light
• ½ cup of rice vinegar
• ¾ cup of light brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes

For The Chicken:

• Peanut or vegetable oil for frying
• 3½ cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of black pepper
• 2 cups of buttermilk
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, diced into 1-inch cubes

For The Topping (Optional):

• 1 tablespoon of toasted sesame seeds
• 3 green onions, finely sliced
• 3 cups of cooked white rice

Substitutions And Additions

CHICKEN BREASTS: Chicken thighs would also work well for this easy sesame chicken recipe.

BROWN SUGAR: You could replace this with a half cup of honey to make honey sesame chicken if you wish.

RICE VINEGAR: If you don’t have rice vinegar, then you could use apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar instead.

CORNSTARCH: You could replace the cornstarch with arrowroot, or flour would also work in a pinch.

BUTTERMILK: If you don’t have buttermilk, you could use whole milk with two tablespoons of lemon juice added.

TOASTED SESAME SEEDS: The sesame seeds are optional, so leave them out if needed.

How To Make This Sesame Chicken Recipe

Once you mix up the sauce, you will coat and fry the chicken pieces in oil. Toss the chicken with the savory sauce and enjoy!

STEP ONE: In a small saucepan, sauté the ginger and garlic paste in sesame oil for one to two minutes.

STEP TWO: Stir the cornstarch into ½ cup of water.

STEP THREE: Add the cornstarch mixture, soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, and red pepper flakes to the saucepan.

STEP FOUR: Simmer over medium heat, whisking occasionally, for about ten minutes or until the sauce thickens to a syrupy consistency. Remove from the heat.

STEP FIVE: While the sauce is simmering, fill a stockpot or deep frying pan with two or three inches of oil. Affix a food thermometer to the side of the pan and heat the oil to 350°F. This will take about ten minutes.

STEP SIX: While the oil is heating, whisk together the salt, pepper, and flour in a bowl. Pour the buttermilk into a second bowl.

STEP SEVEN: Dip each piece of chicken into the flour mixture, into the buttermilk, and then back into the flour mixture. Set aside.

STEP EIGHT: When the oil is hot, fry the pieces of chicken in batches. Add five to eight pieces of battered chicken to the hot oil at a time, frying for two minutes on each side. Drain the oil back into the pan, and place the fried chicken onto a paper towel to soak up any excess.

STEP NINE: When all of the chicken has finished cooking, transfer the chicken to a large bowl. Pour the sauce over the top and toss to coat evenly.

STEP TEN: Serve over rice immediately, then garnish with toasted sesame seeds and green onions, if desired.

How To Serve

This scrumptious crispy chicken is the perfect way to recreate Chinese takeout at home. With its sticky sauce and tasty battered chicken, it will be a sure family favorite. We like to serve our sesame chicken over white or brown rice. It’s also fantastic served over this fried rice recipe.

And let’s not forget a batch of our homemade egg rolls for a delicious accompaniment.

For a vegetarian version of this dish, take a look at our sticky sesame cauliflower. Our orange chicken and lemon chicken are two more Chinese food recipes that taste just like takeout.

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Storing This Easy Sesame Chicken Recipe

This tasty sesame chicken can be reheated later for a quick lunch or dinner idea.

IN THE FRIDGE: You can store cooked sesame chicken in sauce in the refrigerator for up to three days in an airtight container. Heat thoroughly on the stovetop or in the microwave.

IN THE FREEZER: If you plan to freeze sesame chicken, we suggest freezing the cooked chicken separately from the sesame chicken sauce and tossing it together after reheating.

If you love crispy chicken, we think you’ll agree that this is the best sesame chicken recipe that’s most similar to the takeout version. To make a skinny version of this Chinese-style sesame chicken, consider skipping the batter and stir-frying the chicken in just a couple of tablespoons of olive oil before coating it with the delicious sauce.

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Sesame Chicken

5 from 2 votes

This Chinese restaurant-inspired sesame chicken recipe is made with pieces of crispy battered chicken tossed in a deliciously sweet sesame sauce.

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 55 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 25 minutes minutes

Servings 6

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Ingredients

  

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Sauce

• 1½ tablespoons sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon garlic paste
• ½ teaspoon ginger paste
• 1½ tablespoons cornstarch
• ½ cup water
• ⅓ cup soy sauce, lite
• ½ cup rice vinegar
• ¾ cup light brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, crushed

Chicken

• 3½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 cups buttermilk
• 4 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless, and diced into approximately 1-inch cubes)
• vegetable or peanut oil, for frying

Topping (Optional)

• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
• 3 green onions, finely sliced
• 3 cups cooked white rice

Instructions

 

• In a small saucepan, saute the ginger and garlic paste in sesame oil for 1 to 2 minutes or until fragrant.
• Stir 1½ tablespoons of cornstarch into ½ cup of water.
• Add the soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, cornstarch/water mixture, and red pepper flakes to the saucepan.
• Simmer over medium heat, whisking occasionally, until the sauce thickens to a syrup consistency. This will take approximately 10 minutes.
• Remove the sauce from the heat.
• Fill a deep stockpot/Dutch oven or frying pan with 2 to 3 inches of oil.
• Affix a food thermometer to the side of the pan and heat the oil to 350°F. This will take about 10 minutes to reach the desired temperature.
• While the oil is heating, prepare the battered chicken. Whisk together the salt, pepper, and flour in a bowl. Then pour the buttermilk into a second bowl.
• Working with just a few pieces of chicken at a time, dip each piece of chicken into the flour mixture to coat it. Then, dip it into the buttermilk. Finally, dip it back into the flour mixture and set it on a separate plate.
• When the oil has reached 350°F, batch cook the chicken. Add 5 to 8 pieces of battered chicken to the hot oil at a time, frying for about 2 minutes and then flipping them over to cook on the other side for another 2 minutes.
• When the chicken is uniformly golden brown, remove it from the oil, draining the excess oil back into the pan, and placing the fried chicken onto a few paper towels to absorb any additional oil.
• Continue batch cooking the chicken, ensuring that the oil maintains a fairly constant temperature of 350°F.
• When all of the chicken has finished cooking, transfer it to a large bowl.
• Pour the sauce over the top and toss to coat evenly.
• Serve over rice immediately then garnish with toasted sesame seeds and green onions, if desired.

Notes

• Ensure that the oil maintains a temperature of 350°F. If you add too much chicken at once, it will cool the oil and the chicken will become greasy. If the oil becomes too hot, the outside of the chicken will burn.
• Check that the sauce is still hot. If not, warm it on the stovetop for a few minutes before tossing it with the chicken.

Nutrition

Calories: 750kcal | Carbohydrates: 112g | Protein: 46g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 105mg | Sodium: 1381mg | Potassium: 861mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 31g | Vitamin A: 264IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 156mg | Iron: 5mg

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