Crispy chicken pieces covered in the most delicious sticky honey sesame sauce in this crispy honey sesame chicken recipe that’s ready in under 25 minutes. This crispy sesame chicken will be a family favorite and is made for busy weeknights. 

This homemade version of crispy honey chicken recipe is so easy to make and tastes just as good as the one you get at Chinese restaurants. 

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Crispy Honey Sesame Chicken [Better Than Takeout!]

I’m always on the lookout for quick, healthy, and delicious recipes that my family will love so that we can cut down on ordering takeout. This crispy chicken in savory honey sesame sauce will be the perfect addition to your recipe collection that the whole family will love!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe:

1. Quick – You can make this entire meal faster than it takes you to order and wait for your food at a Chinese restaurant.
2. Better Than Takeout – Not only is this meal cheaper, and healthier but also tastes better than takeout.
3. Family Favorite – Everyone in your home will love the sweet and savory sauce coated chicken pieces.

Key Ingredients In Crispy Sesame Chicken

Here’s what you need to make this easy Chinese food dinner recipe:

• Chicken Breasts: This recipe uses 1 pound of boneless skinless chicken breast. Cut breasts into small 1-inch cubes.
• Eggs: For coating the chicken.
• Flour
• Cornstarch: To give chicken crispiness.

For the sticky sauce:

• Oil
• Garlic: minced
• Oil: Vegetable or Canola. We use it for frying the chicken pieces.
• Honey
• Soy Sauce
• Ketchup
• Brown Sugar
• Rice Wine Vinegar: Can be found at the Asian section of most grocery stores.
• Sesame Oil
• Cornstarch
• Sesame Seeds

The recipe card below has a complete list of ingredients and amounts.

How To Make The Homemade Sesame Chicken

1. Whisk eggs in a bowl; mix 1/3 cup flour and cornstarch in another.
2. Coat chicken in egg, then flour mixture.
3. Fill a deep frying pan with 3 inches of oil.
4. Fry chicken in batches for 5-7 minutes until golden brown; transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.

5. In a bowl, mix honey, soy sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and cornstarch.

6. Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan on medium heat, add garlic, and cook for 30 seconds.

7. Add sauce, simmer for 2 minutes, then add chicken and coat.

8. Sprinkle sesame seeds and serve.

Recipe Tips

• Add some sliced scallions or green onion before serving for more flavor and color.
• You can swap the chicken breast for chicken thighs.
• Add some red chili flakes or chili sauce to make this dish spicier.

Storing & Reheating

If you have any leftovers, place them into an airtight container and store them for up to 3-4 days in your fridge. 

This crispy honey sesame chicken recipe makes a great meal prep idea and can be just microwaved to warm up. I recommend adding a bit of extra sticky honey sauce when reheating to make it extra delicious.

What To Serve With Sesame Chicken?

I like to serve my crispy sesame chicken with some soft and fluffy white rice for the perfect contrast in textures but it also goes extremely well with brown rice.

You can also serve it with cauliflower rice for a low-carb option.

For vegetable sides, try an Asian vegetable side such as bok choy, green beans, or broccoli.

You could even serve these sweet honey sauce bites as finger food at parties – just insert a toothpick and serve them as a Chinese appetizer.

Can you make crispy honey sesame chicken in the air fryer?

Yes, you can, to make a healthier version of this honey sesame chicken recipe, skip the deep frying and make it in the air fryer.

To do this, coat the chicken as per recipe instructions, then place all of the coated chicken pieces in one layer in your air fryer, spray with some cooking oil or olive oil spray, and air fry at 400F for 8-10 minutes, turn the pieces over and spray some more oil and cook for another 8 minutes.

When all of the batches of the chicken are cooked, make the sticky sauce and coat the chicken pieces.

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Yield: 4

Crispy Honey Sesame Chicken (Better Than Takeout!)

5.0 Stars (2 Reviews)

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This crispy honey sesame chicken dish, which takes less than 25 minutes to prepare, has crispy chicken pieces wrapped in the most delicious sticky honey sesame sauce. Your whole family will love this quick weeknight copycat Chinese takeout recipe.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

For the chicken pieces

Toggle ingredient group

• 1 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut into 1 inch pieces)
• 2 eggs (beaten)
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• oil for deep frying (vegetable or canola oil)

For the sticky honey sesame sauce

Toggle ingredient group

• 1 tsp oil (saved from the oil we use for deep frying)
• 2 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds

Instructions

1. Take 2 bowls, whisk the eggs in the first bowl and in the second bowl, combine 1/3 cup flour with 1/3 cup cornstarch.
2. Dip chicken pieces in the egg mix, then in the flour mix, and do this until all of the chicken pieces are coated.
3. Fill a deep frying pan with 3 inches of oil.
4. Once the pan is hot, drop in the chicken pieces in batches and cook for 5-7 minutes until crispy and golden brown, then transfer to a plate with a paper towel to absorb the oil. Repeat with all of the chicken.
5. Mix 1/4 cup honey, 1/3 cup soy sauce, 1/3 cup ketchup, 2 tbsp brown sugar, rice vinegar, sesame oil and cornstarch in a small bowl.
6. Heat up 1 tsp oil in a large pan on medium head. Add minced garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
7. Add the sauce mix into the pan and simmer for 2 minutes until slightly thickened.
8. Add the chicken pieces back to the pan and coat with the sauce. Then sprinkle with the sesame seeds. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

For the ultimate crispy chicken, only coat it with the sauce just before serving as the sauce will make it slightly softer and make it lose it's crispiness.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 521Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 189mgSodium: 1462mgCarbohydrates: 50gFiber: 2gSugar: 27gProtein: 42g