This recipe is generously sponsored by Dole Packaged Foods but all opinions (like the fact that this healthy sweet and sour chicken is un-freaking-believable) are my own.
This healthy sweet and sour chicken is so crispy and perfectly sweet and sour, but it’s Whole30, paleo, and refined sugar free! This lightened up take on the Chinese classic is totally takeout-worthy yet easy, and the healthy sweet and sour sauce is made with dates and Dole pineapple juice.
When you’re in “screw it” mode at the Chinese buffet, sweet and sour chicken is the siren song of chafing dishes.
Battered, fried, and coated in a super sweet yet tangy sauce. A bit (or a lot?) of food coloring in there for good measure. Ir-re-sis-ti-ble. There’s not much competition along the row of steaming dishes when it comes to sweet and sour chicken: even if you prefer, say, sesame or kung pao chicken, sweet and sour is the crispiest, the richest, the most luxe. Am I right?
So making a healthy sweet and sour chicken recipe with a seriously worthy sweet and sour sauce is a major challenge. A deserving recipe has to be:
- Crispy
- Sweet enough
- Sour enough
- With super tender chicken
I’m not at all ashamed to say that my first version sucked. I had high hopes, took photos, ate a bite, and tried to convince myself to name the dish something else so I could still post it. Sure, the recipe was not bad; it was actually a good dinner! But it wasn’t something I’d call a true healthy sweet and sour chicken recipe. Nah, more like… pineapple chicken stir fry? Good, but not I could eat this for the next six meals good.
Which is kind of exactly what my husband said after eating this version. In fact, it’s caused problems! When we have this healthy sweet and sour chicken in the fridge, he doesn’t want to roll with my new recipes or order takeout when I’m too tired to cook.
Well, that’s not exactly true. He doesn’t care what I do, so long as I leave him and his bowl of leftover healthy sweet and sour chicken out of it.
Why this healthy sweet and sour chicken recipe is so good:
- It’s actually healthy! There’s no added sugar; the sauce is sweetened with dates and pineapple juice from a can of Dole Pineapple Chunks in 100% Pineapple Juice.
- The chicken is actually crispy, thanks to an easy coating using arrowroot powder and eggs. Simple, too!
- The onions and peppers round this dish out with plenty of veggies, so you can serve it over cauliflower rice and call it a night.
- The sweet and sour sauce is oh so good and made easily in the blender with all whole-food ingredients.
- It’s Whole30 compliant and paleo, too!
Variations
- Leave out any element you don’t love, whether that’s the peppers or onion. The pineapple is sooo good here, though (So keep it!).
- Try substituting shrimp for the chicken. Follow the recipe the same as you would for the chicken, but you’ll need to cook the shrimp a lot less, only about 2 minutes.
- If you eat soy, feel free to swap out the coconut aminos for soy sauce in the sauce. Just leave out the salt as well, if you use soy sauce. If you’re on a Whole30, do not use soy sauce!
- I really love to use Dole Pineapple Chunks in 100% Pineapple Juice since they’re easy to keep on hand and perfectly little nuggets of natural sweetness. You can, however, use fresh pineapple, but you will need to sauté it much longer to soften. Just roll with the Dole!
Tips
- I like to sauté the peppers and onions pretty well so they’re not super raw and crunchy-tasting, but I’m not a huge fan of bell peppers to start with. You can sauté them just a couple minutes or a bit longer, depending on your preference.
- Shake up your chicken in batches; about 2 batches will cover everything. This will prevent clumpy chicken pieces, and you can shake up the second batch while the first batch is frying. Just make sure you keep a close eye on the chicken frying!
- Cut your chicken into smaller pieces than you think would be “bite-sized.” You want pieces about 3/4-1″ big, not big chunks. The coating will add some volume here.
Can I use cassava flour instead of arrowroot powder?
Absolutely! Cassava flour is a little harder to find, so I don’t use it in as many of my recipes. It is, however, my favorite grain-free flour or starch, and it works very well in this recipe.
How to make healthy sweet and sour chicken
Make your sauce first: combine all ingredients in a high-speed blender and blend until completely smooth.
Place your arrowroot powder in a large plastic food storage bag. In a medium bowl, whisk your eggs well. Working in 2 batches, add chicken to bag and shake to coat. Remove chicken pieces, tapping to remove excess arrowroot, and transfer to bowl with eggs. Toss to coat then remove chicken pieces, straining to remove any excess egg, and place back in arrowroot bag. Shake up again to coat well, using your hands on the outside to try and break up clumps. Remove from bag, shaking off excess and breaking up any large clumps of pieces.
Heat a layer of coconut oil or avocado oil in a large skillet over medium heat and add chicken to skillet. Fry about 2 minutes to set breading then continue to cook, stirring occasionally and flipping to lightly brown on all sides, until chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes.
Repeat coating and frying process with all chicken.
Clean out skillet and replace on medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon coconut or avocado oil to the skillet and fry peppers, onions, and Dole Pineapple Chunks until peppers are beginning to soften, about 4-5 minutes.
Pour in sauce and cook 2 minutes or until bubbly. Add in cooked chicken and toss to coat. Serve over cauliflower rice and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Other Asian-Inspired Recipes You’ll Love
- Egg Roll in a Bowl
- Healthy Lettuce Wraps
- Szechuan Chicken
- Paleo Sesame Chicken
- Whole30 Bang Bang Shrimp
- Breakfast Egg Roll in a Bowl (Whole30, Paleo)
Healthy Sweet and Sour Chicken (Whole30, Paleo)
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into small chunks, about 3/4-1″
- 1 1/2 cups arrowroot starch plus more as needed, or substitute cassava flour
- 2 eggs beaten well
- refined coconut oil or avocado oil for frying, plus 1 tablespoon
- 1 cup pineapple chunks drained and juice reserved, from a can of Dole Pineapple Chunks in 100% Pineapple Juice
- 1 red bell pepper seeded, quartered, and cut into 1/2″ strips
- 1 green bell pepper seeded, quartered, and cut into 1/2″ strips
- 1/2 yellow onion halved and sliced
- white sesame seeds for garnish
- green onions green parts thinly sliced, for garnish
- steamed cauliflower rice to serve
Healthy Sweet and Sour Sauce
- 1/2 cup pineapple juice drained from can of Dole Pineapple Chunks in 100% Pineapple Juice
- 2 teaspoons arrowroot starch
- 3 tablespoons dates about 3 Neglet or 2 Medjool, pitted
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/3 cup Whole30 ketchup
- 1 tablespoon coco aminos
- 2 cloves garlic peeled
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Make the sauce: Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until completely smooth. Set aside.
- Sprinkle chicken pieces with salt. Pour arrowroot powder into a gallon Ziploc bag, and place eggs in a medium bowl. Add half of chicken to the bag with arrowroot. Shake to coat then remove chicken, tapping to remove excess. Transfer chicken to bowl with eggs and toss to coat. Remove from bowl, letting excess drain off, and transfer back to bag with arrowroot powder. Toss again to coat, using hands to break up any clumpy pieces. Remove from bag and set aside.
- Repeat process with remaining half of chicken, adding more arrowroot powder to bag as needed to coat.
- Heat a layer of coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Working in about two batches, add chicken and cook 1-2 minutes to set bottom breading. Continue to cook another 3-4 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and coating is lightly golden brown. Transfer to a plate, and repeat the process with the remaining chicken.
- Clean out skillet and add in 1 tablespoon coconut oil or avocado oil. Add peppers, onions, and pineapple and sauté until peppers are beginning to soften, about 4-5 minutes. Add in sauce and cook 1-2 minutes until bubbly and thickened.
- Add in cooked chicken and stir gently but thoroughly to coat well.
- Serve over steamed cauliflower rice and sprinkle with white sesame seeds and sliced green onions.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Cheryl Malik is the recipe developer, writer, and photographer behind the healthy, flavorful, family friendly recipes at 40 Aprons. She’s been a blogger for 10+ years and is known for her delicious recipes and detailed recipe instructions. Cheryl is a mom of three who lives in Memphis, TN.
Julie says
Delicious!! I craved this and then realized I didn’t have juice. So I blendered some real pineapple to substitute. Also used regular soy sauce and ketchup just less.I also added mushrooms. Looking forward to making this again as written. Thank you so much!
Cheryl Malik says
Thank you! Glad it worked out for you!
Samantha Seminario says
Delicious! We have tons of leftovers is there a method you recommend for reheating so the chicken doesn’t end up rubbery?
Cheryl Malik says
Thanks, glad you enjoyed! I find reheating chicken on the stove or in the oven (at a lower temperature) works best.
Marissa A. says
This is seriously SO GOOD. I wish I had put a bit of salt and pepper on the chicken before cooking (rookie mistake on my part). I also left out the dates for no other reason than I just didn’t have any on hand and it was still amazing, and sweet enough (I usually have a major sweet tooth!)
Before cooking, the sauce smelled a little too vinegary for my tastes so I didn’t use all of it. The vinegar taste and smell went away once it simmered, and I’m glad I trusted the recipe and ultimately used it all. It was PERFECT!
I’m doing Whole30 now, but even afterwards this will be in my regular rotation!
Caycee says
Hello! I can’t have ketchup, is there anything I can replace that with, or if I leave it out, will this taste funny? Thank you in advance!!!
Savannah | 40 Aprons Team says
Can you have any tomato products?
Eme says
So delicious! Chicken took a bit longer to cook (maybe my cutting skills) but otherwise everything was spot on! Thank you for a such a great adaptation of a classic!
Savannah | 40 Aprons Team says
That is awesome to hear! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Julia says
This was just so so good and I will definitely add this to my rotation! I realized half way through making this that I ran out of canned pineapple, so I ended up replacing the juice with orange juice and I added some squeezed lemon for the tartness, and it was still amazing! Next time I will love to try it as written in the recipe with the pineapple chunks and pineapple juice. This was also my first time using cassava flour and it worked really well.
Savannah | 40 Aprons Team says
Wow, we are so glad it worked for you! Thank you for sharing your experience. 🙂
Erika says
This recipe is really good! It was a little on the sour side for my liking, but good nonetheless! I used arrowroot and my kids loved the chicken without the sauce. I think next time I’ll add more pineapple juice and lesson the vinegar and ketchup. I measured but my sauce was way more red than yours, lol.
I, like others above, think it’s a little time consuming but I cooked for a living for years and cook almost nonstop at home lol so it doesn’t really bother me. I also maybe took my time with it too.
Thanks for the recipe!
Cheryl Malik says
It definitely takes a little time, but I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Pam says
is this gluten-free? It seems like it is but I don’t see it mentioned.
Amelia Camurati says
If you stick to these ingredients it is!
JB says
This is SOSOSOSO GOOD!! Breading the chicken in cassava, while delicious, was a little too involved for me (I need to be able to cook dinner quickly and it just took too long).
This dish reminds me of something my mom used to make, so I would probably just toss them in cassava flour and skip the egg just to save time but still have a little bit of coating on them.
The sauce is delicious and you would literally never know that it had apple cider vinegar, coconut aminos or dates in it.
This recipe made an amazing amount of leftovers for just two people. I served it with cauliflower rice, but I enjoyed it on it’s own as well.
Cheryl Malik says
I’m so happy you loved it!!!
Julie Hansen says
I made this for my family of 4, and I’m the only one on Whole30. They loved it. I used the cassava flour and forgot to use the dates in the sauce. This was a hit!! The family loved it. I’ll make this again.
Cheryl Malik says
I am so happy you and your family loved it!
Bailey Moore says
What ketchup did you use? Would your whole 30 ketchup recipe work?
Cheryl Malik says
I use my own, yes!
Karen says
I can’t wait to try this! Question: could this be made with Whole30 compliant soy sauce substitute (from Primal Kitchen)? If so, what ingredient(s) would it take the place of?
Savannah | 40 Aprons Team says
Yes! It would take the place of the coco aminos.
James says
Cheryl,
This was the absolute BOMB! When is the best time to add salt if I want the chicken itself to taste a little saltier?
Thank you!
Savannah | 40 Aprons Team says
You can add some more salt in with the arrowroot powder coating! 🙂
Keanna says
Could this recipe be made freezer friendly? Thanks!
Melissa says
Super good!
Kate says
My goodness. This. Is. Insane. This is probably the 3rd or 4th recipe of yours we’ve made on our Whole30 and they’ve all been phenomenal!!! Thank you for keeping us sane!!! If you ever make a cookbook I will buy 10.
Paula says
Would you substitute almond flour or baking powder if I didn’t have arrowroot starch? Thanks!
Cheryl Malik says
Try cassava flour or even tapioca starch if you don’t have arrowroot! Almond flour won’t work. You can try corn starch if you’re not on a Whole30!
Sara says
We made this on day 17 of our Whole 30. It was absolutely awesome!! We used cassava flour too…it has been my go to flour since I have a nut allergy child. Kids and hubs loved it too!! Definitely will be making this again. And who knew Dole pineapple chunks would be whole 30 approved…so exciting!! Great recipe! Thank you!
Cheryl Malik says
I am soooo happy to hear that! And right?! LOVE the Dole Pineapple Chunks here!
Nicole says
We made this for dinner tonight and breaded the chicken using cassava flour as suggested above. The chicken was so good, one of our daughters ate it plain as chicken nuggets. The sweet and sour sauce was definitely restaurant quality. We’ll make this again!
Cheryl Malik says
That is a genius idea!! The little nuggets are my fave. So happy you liked it!
Jeanine says
Recipe sounds awesome for satisfying chinese take out cravings! I was wondering if it’s possible to cook this in an air fryer.
Cheryl Malik says
I would absolutely think so! I’m not great with the air fryer so not sure how the breading would work, but I bet it would be good!
Steph says
I made this for dinner over the weekend and it was SO GOOD, even my fiancé loved it. Tried reheating the leftovers, and the tapioca starch became kinda like rubbery goo. I will try making with cassava flour next time if I plan on having leftovers, otherwise this recipe will certainly become a staple!
Cheryl Malik says
Yes, cassava flour is definitely the best option if you have it! It’s harder to find for the average person so I tend to keep it out of my recipes, but it’s my favorite! Glad you liked it when it was hot and ready!
Jess says
This was amazing! My husband thought it was restaurant quality but I thought it was better than any Chinese food takeout I’ve ever had! The only change I made was garlic powder rather than fresh garlic, but otherwise I made it as directed. It was a lot of work (cooking the chicken in batches small enough to crisp up took quite a while) but great for a weekend night where I had plenty of time. I wouldn’t attempt on a week night but great for day 12 of my whole30 when I was in need of something special. Thanks for the recipe!
Cheryl Malik says
I am so thrilled you liked it!! I only had to cook mine in two batches and it doesn’t take long each time, so you might be able to add in more than you think 🙂 Thank you so much for letting me know how you enjoyed it!
Adrianne says
Wow – I’m inspired. Thank you for saving my dinner plans tonight. I have to shop & cook this evening and this meal is going to perfectly fit the bill for time AND taste.
Cheryl Malik says
I can’t wait to see how you like it!
Adrianne says
We made this, but I think we did something wrong. The chicken was rubbery with the arrow root starch in it. I can’t claim to have measured it out – I just breaded based on my experience with doing almond meal/coconut chicken breading. Clearly too much arrowroot is NOT for us! Next time I’ll just leave it uncovered and add a little starch to the sauce.
Stephanie Saia says
Do you think this recipe would be good to try in an air fryer?
Cheryl Malik says
I definitely think so!