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Chinese lemon chicken is lightly fried until golden, then baked in the sticky homemade sauce packed with bright lemon flavor. Make a full take-out-style meal at home with my easy fried rice, cream cheese wontons, and chow mein!
When Life Hands You Lemons Make This Chicken
- That sticky lemon sauce: It has the perfect balance of sweet, tangy, and savory flavors.
- Better than takeout: You get tender chicken and plenty of homemade sauce in every bite.
- Simple ingredients: Everything is made with easy ingredients you can find at the grocery store.
A Reader’s Review
Oh gosh delicious and nothing easier. Thank you for the wonderful food.
Carol
Ingredients for Lemon Chicken
- Chicken: Use boneless skinless chicken thighs if you prefer!
- Oil: Vegetable oil or canola oil is best! Add more if needed for frying.
- Lemon Juice: Fresh lemon juice is best! Bottled can also work.
- Lemon Zest: This is a MUST! It gives the sauce the perfect lemony flavor.
- Adjust the Sweetness: For a tangier sauce, slightly reduce the sugar or add a little more lemon juice.
How to Make Chinese Lemon Chicken
This crispy chinese lemon chicken recipe takes a little extra time, but browning the chicken first gives it a delicious coating, while baking it in the sauce makes every piece sweet, sticky, and flavorful. If you like this recipe, I know you’ll love my orange or honey chicken!
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Cut chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces and season with salt and black pepper. Add cornstarch to one bowl and beaten eggs to another bowl. Dip each chicken piece into the cornstarch, then coat it in the egg mixture.
- Cook Chicken: Heat canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook the chicken until browned. Place the chicken in a 9×13 greased baking dish.
- Make Sauce: Mix sugar, lemon juice, soy sauce, white vinegar, lemon zest, garlic salt, and cornstarch in a medium-sized bowl.
- Pour and Bake: Pour the sauce over the chicken and bake for 45 minutes. Stir the chicken every 15 minutes so that it is coated in the sauce. Garnish Chinese lemon chicken with green onion and lemon wedges over rice, then enjoy!
Alyssa’s Pro Crispy Chicken Tips
- Chicken Pieces: Cut the chicken evenly into similar sized pieces.
- Cook in Batches: Avoid overcrowding the skillet.
- Brown the Outside: The chicken will finish cooking in the oven.
- Stir While Baking: Toss the chicken every 15 minutes to coat it evenly in the sauce.
Must Have Tools For This Recipe
- Skillet: Browns the chicken until golden.
- Baking Dish: Holds the chicken and sauce while baking.
- Zester: Makes zesting the lemon easier!
- Spider Strainer: Lifts the chicken out of the hot oil.
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Chinese Lemon Chicken
Tender pieces of chicken are lightly fried and baked in a sticky homemade lemon sauce for a sweet, tangy, better-than-takeout dinner.
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into 1-inch pieces
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1½ cups cornstarch
- 3 large beaten eggs
- ½ cup canola oil
Lemon Sauce
- â…” cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons white vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon garlic salt
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut 1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces and season with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper.
- Add 1½ cups cornstarch to one bowl and 3 large beaten eggs to another bowl. Dip each chicken piece into the cornstarch, then coat it in the egg mixture.
- Heat ½ cup canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook the chicken until browned. Place the chicken in a 9 x 13 greased baking dish.
- Mix ⅔ cup granulated sugar, ½ cup lemon juice, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 3 tablespoons white vinegar, 1 tablespoon lemon zest, ¼ teaspoon garlic salt, and 1 teaspoon cornstarch in a medium-sized bowl.
- Pour the sauce over the chicken and bake for 45 minutes. Stir the chicken every 15 minutes so that it is coated in the sauce.
- Serve over rice and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Leftover Instructions
- In the refrigerator: Store leftover chicken in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- To reheat: Warm the chicken in a skillet over medium-low heat or in a 350°F oven until heated through. The microwave will work, but the coating will be softer.
- In the freezer: Freeze the cooled chicken in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
Nutrition
Serving: 1gCalories: 823kcalCarbohydrates: 81gProtein: 42gFat: 36gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 9gMonounsaturated Fat: 20gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 248mgSodium: 1195mgPotassium: 738mgFiber: 1gSugar: 34gVitamin A: 257IUVitamin C: 16mgCalcium: 38mgIron: 2mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Tried this recipe?Mention @alyssa_therecipecritic or tag #therecipecritic!
More Chinese Takeout-Style Recipes
Oh gosh delicious and nothing easier. Thank you for the wonderful food.
This chicken came out delicious. SO GOOD !! I didn’t put it in the oven. Just left it covered in the skillet on a very low flame. It came out beautiful and so tasty.
I’m a little confused. In the blog you say to double dip the chicken – is it correct to say cornstarch/ egg/ cornstarch? In the recipe you only say to coat it in the cornstarch then the egg – eliminating the second cornstarch dip. Which one is correct?
Just cornstarch then the egg mixture!
Thank you!
You’re using the oven to reduce the sauce…. why don’t you just reduce the sauce in a pan for 10 minutes to save time and energy? I mean, the oven will impart some roasted flavor, but does it affect the final dish enough for the wasted time and energy to keep the oven running for an hour? Also, doesn’t it make the fried chicken pieces soggy? I’m legit asking if you tested both ways to compare because I’m curious.
Simmering the chicken and sauce in a skillet works just as well!
Have you had any type of Chinese food? Sesame chicken? Orange chicken? Sweet and sour chicken? It’s the same thing. The chicken isn’t crispy because of the sauce. It’s just breaded deliciousness.
I simmered chicken and sauce in a skillet for about 45min.
Very good but next time I’ll cut the time by ten minutes. Even hubby liked it!
Isn’t an hour too long in the oven? Being bite sized pieces that are already fried, the chicken will be overcooked that long in the oven.
These are the correct times. You need to stir the chicken every 15 minutes while it’s cooking so it doesn’t get burned.
Tried this recipe tonight and thought I’d share. I will make it again, and it will be better with some improvements.
First off, have y’all ever browned a roast before? It’s the same concept. She isn’t telling you to fry the chicken completely, she told you to brown it. That means get your oil super hot, brown just a bit on each side, not completely fried, then set it on rack. Tip…if your oil is deep enough, you don’t have to flip.
I personally have never used corn starch to fry, and unsure if I will again. I dipped chicken in egg first (because that’s just how you fry things) but I can’t afford using that much corn starch. I liked the result, but will try flour next time.
The flavor of this dish is on point. I added some paprika to the chicken along with salt and pepper.
I doubled the sauce, for 4 chicken breasts (had to thaw them out in microwave and then cut) It had a strong lemon flavor, which I like, but added even more sugar for the kids. Next time, I might cut the sugar with orange juice or use honey as sugar substitute.
I did not use the oven. I browned the chicken in batches, literally like 1 min per side if your oil is hot enough. Set them on a baking rack over paper towels. When they were all done, I dumped the grease, wiped pan with a paper towel and put chicken back it. Poured the sauce on, quickly brought it to boiling, then simmered until everything else was done. The cornstarch has to boil thicken. Do not stir too much or the coating on the chicken will fall off. I topped it off with sesame seeds for kids. Served with steamed rice and broccoli.
Delicious and a great recipe when you want Chinese take out but don’t want to spend the money. Thank you!!
I am looking forward to trying your recipes
This says it takes an hour from start to finish, but you aren’t accounting for the fact that the chicken doesn’t need to stay in the oven for an hour..
Hello! This chicken takes about 15 minutes to prep and then 1 hour to cook!