With this recipe, you won't need another sesame chicken recipe. I promise. It's extremely easy with huge shortcut that makes you spend minimal time in the kitchen.
And the result is super delicious, fast weekday dinners, just like our air fryer bang bang chicken! You wouldn't believe it.
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Recipe Highlights
Texture and flavour - Crispy chicken bites coated with thick sweet and salty sauce with a hint of spiciness to it.
Level - Super easy that you wouldn't believe!
Size - Enough for 4. Serve with rice and veggies on the side.
Occasion - Whenever you crave for some Asian food but still want to eat good. Forget the take-aways, you can enjoy this in less than 1 hour with minimal cooking.
The Secret Why This Recipe Is Way Easier
The secret is using frozen chicken tenders or nuggets! I've tested this recipe the traditional way (prep the chicken myself) and my shortcut way and let me tell you, I won't waste time with the traditional way ever, again. Now let me tell you why it's a brilliant shortcut, ever.
No need to prep the chicken - No need to go through the tedious process of coating each piece of chicken in egg and flour mixture. We're using something that already come with delicious seasoned coating anyways, so why the extra work?
No frying - You bake them instead, just like I did with my delicious honey sriracha chicken. There's less and less work involved here, can you see? Let the oven do the work for ya!
Less time in the kitchen - No need to babysit and cook the chicken. Go and rest while the chicken is in the oven.
Fewer ingredients - Yep, just check out the photo below. That's all the ingredients that you need.
Lets Talk Ingredients
Chicken tenders/nuggets - Find the best you can. I use chicken tenders that's already with spicy coating. Batter coating works better than bread crumbs coating. Look for the ones that say you can bake in the oven.
Ketchup - Also, find the best you can. If you like your ketchup spicy with chili, then use it. It's up to you.
Less salt soy sauce - I always use it as it gives more flavour without the extra salt. Use half amount if you're using the normal soy sauce.
Lime juice - Acidic element. Use lemon juice or rice vinegar with no problem.
Tips To Get The Best Crispy Chicken
Nobody likes soggy fried-baked chicken, right? Here's how to get them crispy all the time.
Higher temperature - I always bake them 20 degrees higher than what the instructions in the packet say. It makes the coating crispier.
Higher rack - If possible, use the higher ⅔ rack. Just keep an eye on them since the heat is closer to the chicken (and even with higher temperature).
Spray - Spray the chicken pieces with some oil before baking. It helps them get crispier skin.
Bake longer - I like to bake them 5-10 minutes more than what the instructions in the packet say. Just make sense of it too, alright, since all ovens are different. We don't want the chicken to get dry or burnt.
Rest - Leave the chicken for 10-15 minutes before tossing in the sauce. This is to avoid the coating breaking off the chicken if you toss them in when they're still hot.
More Recipes
- Crispy baked lemon pepper wings
- Quick massaman chicken curry
- 30-minute chicken ramen
- Baked honey sriracha chicken
- Easy chicken satay
Recipe Video
📖 Recipe
Easiest crispy sesame chicken
Video
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1 lb frozen chicken tenders/nuggets (450 g)
Sauce
- 2 garlic cloves , grated
- 1 teaspoon chili flakes
- ⅓ cup ketchup (100 g)
- ⅓ cup water
- 1 tablespoon less salt soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
Instructions
Chicken
- Bake chicken with 20 degrees higher temperature and 5-10 minutes longer than packet's instructions. Refer to my post above for details. Remove from oven and leave for 10-15 minutes.
Sauce
- Heat some oil in a pan on medium heat. Sautee garlic and chili flakes until garlic is golden brown.
- Add in the rest of the sauce ingredients except for sesame seeds and oil. Stir well and cook for 1-2 minutes until the sauce thickens slightly.
- Add in chicken and toss everything together. Heat off. Add in sesame seed and oil. Give it another toss and serve!
Notes
- Get crispy baked chicken by baking them in slightly higher temperature and longer than the packet's instructions. Just make sure to keep an eye on them to avoid the chicken getting dry or burnt.
- Leave the chicken for 10-15 minutes before tossing in the sauce to prevent the coating breaking off the chicken.
- Batter coated chicken works better than breadcrumbs coated ones.
Nutrition Facts
The nutrition facts provided are an estimate per serving. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
Rick says
Tasty! We keep a bag of nuggets in the freezer. The rest of the ingredients are always on hand, and I have made this twice. The first time, I made it exactly per the recipe (you always have to have the base line) and it was really good. The second batch, I reduced the ketchup to 1/4 cup, substituted light brown sugar for the white sugar, and added 1 tbs rice vinegar. These changes do not suggest the recipe needs help, just tweaked to please my personal palate. Thanks for sharing!
Bea & Marco says
We're thrilled to hear that you're enjoying the recipe, Rick! Thank you for sharing your feedback and your twist on it, we really appreciate it! Sorry for the late reply, as we've recently moved house and are still figuring things out!
Melissa says
frozen nuggets idea is genius!! LOL!
kudos for creating this. the whole family loved it including my picky 2 YO.
Bea says
Haha! Faster and easier, right? I'm always feeling extra accomplished when I get to know a toddler/child is happy with my recipe 😂. Thank you so much, Melissa!
Adriana Mar says
Waooo! Me encantó. 10/10
La acabo de preparar y está riquísima. Gracias por la receta, me gustaría que publicaras una de pollo con naranja como la de “Panda Express”
Bea says
Hola Adriana! Me alegro que te haya gustado, muchas gracias por tu comentario. Tengo una receta de pollo a la naranja mas saludable, si te apetece. Un saludo!
linda says
Hi thanks for recipes sorry it is so hot there! We have 14 c and up to 20c today! Love it we also had light rain showers. we live on Northern Vancouver Island. Have a great day.
Bea says
Oh that sounds lovely! I'm going to start packing and move to your place, Linda 😂!