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Square overhead image of a bowl of sweet and sour chicken with chunks of onion, red & green peppers and pineapple in sauce. The bowl is on a wooden surface.
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Air Fryer Sweet and Sour Chicken

Crispy air fried chicken with peppers, onions and pineapple, in a simple homemade sweet and sour sauce.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Asian, Chinese
Keyword: better than takeout, Fakeaway, Takeout
Servings: 4
Author Nicky Corbishley

Equipment

  • Double Stack Air Fryer - you can of course use a regular single-basket air fryer, but you'll likely need to cook in two batches
  • Spray Oil - I use avocado oil

Ingredients

Chicken:

  • 6 large skinless chicken thigh fillets (this is about 750g/1.65lbs untrimmed or 600g/1.3lbs once trimmed)
  • 6 tbsp cornflour (corn starch in USA)
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • ½ tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • spray oil (I use approx 5-6ml - which is about a teaspoon)

Vegetables:

  • 1 large onion peeled and chopped into large chunks
  • 1 red pepper chopped into 1 inch pieces
  • 1 green pepper chopped into 1 inch pieces
  • spray oil (I use approx 5-6ml - which is about a teaspoon)

Sauce:

  • 1 tsp minced garlic (garlic paste)
  • 1 tsp minced ginger
  • 150 ml (2/3 cup) tomato ketchup
  • 1 tbsp malt vinegar
  • 6 tbsp dark brown muscovado sugar
  • 432 g (15.2 oz) canned pineapple chunks in juice

To Serve:

  • egg fried rice or boiled rice
  • sesame seeds
  • chopped spring onions (scallions)

Instructions

  • Take the chicken thigh fillets, trim off the excess fat, and cut into bite-size pieces. Put to one side.
    6 large skinless chicken thigh fillets
  • In a medium-sized bowl, mix the cornflour, salt, pepper, garlic salt, and paprika.
    6 tbsp cornflour (corn starch in USA), 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, ½ tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp paprika
  • Place the chicken in the bowl with the cornflour, and mix, ensuring every piece of chicken is completely covered.
  • Spray the air fryer basket with a little oil, then place the chicken in the airfryer basket in a single layer. Spray the chicken with spray oil (or you can brush on some oil). You may have to work in two batches if you have a small airfryer.
    spray oil
  • Cook on the air fryer setting at 190C/375F for about 16-18 minutes – until the chicken is fully cooked and no longer pink in the middle. Check on the chicken and give it a shake at least 3 times during cooking, to ensure the chicken doesn't stick together.
  • While the chicken is cooking, make the sauce. Add all of the sauce ingredients to a microwave-safe bowl and stir together. Microwave on high for about 3-4 minutes, stirring every minute, until the sauce is hot and slightly thickened (see notes for saucepan alternative). Put to one side.
    1 tsp minced garlic (garlic paste), 1 tsp minced ginger, 150 ml (2/3 cup) tomato ketchup, 1 tbsp malt vinegar, 6 tbsp dark brown muscovado sugar, 432 g (15.2 oz) canned pineapple chunks in juice
  • When the chicken is cooked, remove from the air fryer basket and place in a bowl. Place the chopped onions and peppers in the air fryer basket spray with oil and cook at 200C/400F for 6-7 minutes, until softened and very slightly charred.
    1 large onion, 1 red pepper, 1 green pepper, spray oil
  • Add the chicken back in with the vegetables and cook at 200C/400F for 1 minute (just to warm the chicken back through).
  • Transfer the chicken and vegetables to a bowl and pour over the sauce (you may need to heat for for 30 seconds first if it's cooled a little). Toss together with the sauce.
  • Serve with boiled or fried rice and a sprinkling of sesame seeds and spring onions.
    egg fried rice or boiled rice, sesame seeds, chopped spring onions (scallions)

Notes

Check the chicken is cooked

You want to ensure the chicken is fully cooked before serving. Slice open one of the larger pieces you can find, and make sure it's no longer pink in the middle. If it's white with no pink areas, it's cooked.

Want to make the sauce in a saucepan instead?

Place all of the sauce ingredients into a saucepan and mix together to combine. Heat over a medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the sauce starts to bubble and thicken slightly (this should take about 3-4 minutes). Then turn off the heat.

Make the sauce ahead

Place all of the sauce ingredients in an airtight container and stir together. Place the lid on and refrigerate (for up to a day), then heat up when ready.
Nutritional Information is per serving not including rice (I don't know how much rice you're going to serve this with :-))

Nutrition

Calories: 447kcal | Carbohydrates: 63g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Cholesterol: 143mg | Sodium: 637mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 44g

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