This homemade Ginger Chicken is amazingly easy to make right at home, with a delicious spicy ginger sauce. You might like it more than the restaurant version.
Well today I was craving ginger chicken all day. I was busy all morning working away, so when hubs called me and asked if I wanted him to pick up some lunch for us, I immediately said ginger chicken. Well as luck would have it our favorite little Chinese spot was closed.
Well I still wanted ginger chicken, so I remembered I had taken some chicken out to make something for dinner later and decided to make ginger chicken. And you know what I’m glad that place was closed because this was the lunch of my dreams!
The thing is I wanted to make it just like they have it at this little restaurant, they cut their chicken in long thin strips, the chicken strips are then breaded and fried and then they’re drenched in this amazing spicy ginger sauce.
What is Ginger Chicken?
Ever heard of ginger beef? It’s a Canadian Chinese dish that combines crispy beef with a super aromatic, tasty, sticky sauce. We’re subbing the beef for chicken today because it tastes so good with a bit of poultry.
Ingredients
Chicken
- Chicken – Chicken breast, boneless and skinless and cubed up.
- Eggs – The binder for our dredge, this ensures our dredge completely sticks to our chicken.
- Vegetable oil – For frying up our chicken, choose something mild tasting like canola.
- Garnish – Chopped green onions and sesame seeds – the finishing touch for any ginger chicken dish!
Breading
- Flour – All purpose is all we need to take this dish to the next level!
- Spices – Smoked paprika, garlic powder, and ground ginger are all we need today.
- Cornstarch – This is the key to achieving a crisp crunchy coating on our chicken.
- Seasoning – Salt and pepper to taste.
Sauce
- Sauce – We’re using soy sauce and sriracha for some salt and some heat.
- Honey – We need a hint of sweetness in our sauce and the texture of this honey lends itself to creating a flavorful glaze.
- Aromatics – Fresh ginger and garlic.
- Heat – Include a bit of red pepper flakes – if you can handle it.
- Seasoning – Freshly ground black pepper – no salt needed since we’re getting plenty from our soy sauce!
What cut of chicken works best?
This dish works great with both chicken breast and chicken thighs, as long as it’s skinless and boneless. It’s all up to you whether you like white or dark meat most. Chicken thighs are usually juicier than breasts, but they both taste delicious!
How to make Ginger Chicken
- Prep the dredge: Whisk the eggs in a shallow plate. In another shallow plate whisk together all the breading ingredients. Dip the chicken pieces in the egg wash then dredge them through the flour and make sure each piece is fully coated in flour.
- Cook the chicken: Fill a Dutch oven or a deep frying pan with vegetable oil, about 1 1/2 inches deep and heat. When the oil is hot, add chicken to the pan, a few at a time, and fry it for about 3 or 4 minutes until it’s golden brown, make sure the chicken is cooked inside. Repeat this until all the chicken is fried.
- Form the sauce: To make the sauce whisk all the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. Drizzle the sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and green onions if preferred.
Find the oil that works for you
Most foods are fried between 350 F to 400 F degrees so you need to choose oils with a smoke point above 400 F degrees. For this dish I used vegetable oil because it’s a neutral tasting, all-purpose oil good for anything from frying to baking. Here are some other options if you’d prefer to go a different route:
- Peanut oil – it has neutral taste and a high smoking point which makes it perfect for high-temperature cooking.
- Safflower oil – it’s almost flavorless, has a high smoke point of 520 F degrees. This oil is a great substitute for vegetable oil and because it doesn’t solidify when chilled, it’s great for salad dressings as well.
- Avocado oil – this is a new favorite oil of mine. It has a high smoke point of 520 F degrees, but it has a light, slightly nutty flavor.
How to serve
My favorite way to serve this is over cooked rice such as Jasmine rice or Basmati rice. You could also serve it over noodles – the world is your oyster!
Leftovers
I usually just store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge. It should last 3 to 4 days.
Freezing
Store it in airtight containers or freezer bags in the freezer for 3 to 4 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight then reheat in the microwave. The chicken will be a big soggy so if you want to keep it crispy, store the sauce separately from the chicken.
Craving More Asian Inspired Dishes? Try These:
- Kung Pao Chicken
- Easy Beef And Broccoli Stir Fry
- Instant Pot General Tso’s Chicken
- Chow Mein
- Chicken Lo Mein
- Sweet And Sour Chicken
- Asian Style Pepper Steak
- Sticky Honey Soy Chicken Wings
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Ginger Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lb chicken breast boneless and skinless and cut into thin long strips
- 2 large eggs
- vegetable oil for frying
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds optional
- 2 green onions chopped, optional
For chicken breading
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp salt or to taste
- ½ tsp pepper or to taste
For Sauce
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 tbsp honey
- ½ cup soy sauce low sodium
- 1 tbsp sriracha sauce
- 1 tsp fresh ginger minced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ½ tsp pepper
Instructions
- Whisk the eggs in a shallow plate. In another shallow plate whisk together all the breading ingredients.
- Dip the chicken pieces in the egg wash then dredge them through the flour and make sure each piece is fully coated in flour.
- Fill a Dutch oven or a deep frying pan with vegetable oil, about 1 1/2 inches deep and heat. When the oil is hot, add chicken to the pan, a few at a time, and fry it for about 3 or 4 minutes until it’s golden brown, make sure the chicken is cooked inside. Repeat this until all the chicken is fried.
- To make the sauce whisk all the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. Drizzle the sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and green onions if preferred.
Recipe Notes
- Storage: I usually just store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge. It should last 3 to 4 days.
- Freezing: Store it in airtight containers or freezer bags in the freezer for 3 to 4 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight then reheat in the microwave. The chicken will be a big soggy so if you want to keep it crispy, store the sauce separately from the chicken.
- Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
Way too salty! Use low sodium soya sauce. Nice spice level. Added julienne carrot and onion quickly pan fried and added to sauce
This was amazingly easy and very delicious 😋
This was EXCELLENT! The only change I will make in future is to thicken the sauce slightly. I agree with you Jo…better than store bought! Thank you for sharing this with everyone!
My pleasure, so glad you enjoyed it!
Looks delicious
This dish was easy to make and came out looking beautiful. I would make it again but would either omit the salt in the breading or use low sodium soya sauce in the sauce. Mine was almost inedible because it was so salty!
Thank you for the awesome delicious recipe.
My pleasure!
I love crunchy chicken! And the simplicity amd beauty of your photos never cease to amaze me! You are right, Asian food is not that hard to make at home…just have to have the right ingredients on hand 🙂
Thank you Mila 🙂
Mmmm, I could so go some of these right now! I haven’t made breaded Asian in ages. I had to giggle when I was reading because I go through the same!! I’m cursed on Mondays. In Australia, most restaurants are closed on Mondays – I guess they think no one gets takeout at the beginning of the week. But I seem to always want takeout on a Monday – and I only get it once ever couple of months!!!
So I understand exactly what you mean about having a hankering for a particular takeout. And I bet this IS better than the restaurant version. Check out that sticky sauce!!
Hi, love your blog and recipes! I even have a board on Pinterest dedicated to you! Was wondering……this ginger chicken recipe looks fantastic, but the nutritional info isn’t listed. Since I am on Weight Watchers and Diabetic is it possible to get the nutritional info. I love that you’ve included it in past recipes. Keep up the good work. Donna Divis
Hi Donna,
It’s hard to provide nutritional info on fried food and that’s why I omit it. It all depends on how much oil you use and honestly it’s hard to tell how much actually gets used up. I’ll provide nutritional info for foods that are “healthier” 🙂
I kind of shy away from Asian recipes, but like you said, after a few tries is not that scary, so I just have to give it a try, this dish definitely sounds delicious, and a winner with my family, no crazy ingredients as well, I have to try it 🙂 Pinning!
Hope you do. 🙂
I pinned this. I feel a craving coming on, too!
xoxoBella | http://xoxobella.com