Takeout-Inspired Chinese Chicken Recipe

Sometimes, you can get the taste of Chinese takeout without even leaving your home. When it comes to foods you order for takeout, Chinese is the go-to for many people and most people have the same local spot that they order from over and over again. This recipe for Chinese chicken is takeout-inspired. All you need is some chicken and a few additional ingredients for the delicious and flavorful sauce that compliments the chicken so well and voila, you have a takeout meal at home. Just serve over a bed of rice or noodles and you're in business! 

Recipe developer Catherine Brookes came up with this simple recipe that yields takeout chicken in no time. She opted to use chicken thighs instead of the breast to keep the meat more tender and flavorful. "The combination of tender chicken thigh meat with this sweet and tangy sauce is so moreish!" Brookes raves.

Start by grabbing all the of necessary ingredients to make this dish. You will need cornstarch, olive oil, boneless chicken thighs, garlic cloves, grated ginger, red pepper flakes, soy sauce, oyster sauce, honey, chicken stock, sesame oil, and rice vinegar.

Once you have those items, you can whip up this takeout-inspired Chinese chicken.

In a small bowl, add the cornstarch and a tablespoon of water. Mix well to combine. "Adding the cornstarch slurry to the sauce helps to thicken it up a little as it cooks," Brookes notes. 

You can mix up the rest of the sauce in the same bowl in which you mixed the water and cornstarch. Add garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, soy sauce, oyster sauce, honey, chicken stock, sesame oil, and rice vinegar. Use a spoon to mix well and combine. 

This sauce is super tasty. "The taste is a balance of sweet, sour and savory, with the garlic and ginger coming through too," Brookes says of the flavor. 

For this step, you will need a large frying pan. Place it on your stove and turn the heat to medium-high. Drizzle in the olive oil and let it get hot before adding the chicken.

When cooking the chicken, you want to ensure it's done and no longer pink in the middle. This should take about 5 minutes to achieve. 

Now, you can dump the sauce in with the chicken and let the two cook together. You'll want to let the sauce thicken, so keep the pan on the heat for about 5 minutes.

Then, remove the pan from heat and get ready to serve.

You can enjoy this chicken by itself or make it more of a complete meal by adding a few other things. This dish would be great served over a bed of rice or noodles, and if you'd like, you could always add some veggies to the mix. You can also add a little sprinkle of sesame seeds or spring onion on top. Brookes also suggests serving with "other Chinese side dishes such as spring rolls, prawn crackers, prawn toast." 

We don't think you will have anything left, but if you do — we have you covered! "Leftovers will keep well covered in the fridge up to 2 days," Brookes shares.