This Mongolian chicken is crispy slices of chicken breast stir fried in a sweet and savory sauce. A restaurant favorite that tastes even better when you make it at home!
I’m a huge fan of Mongolian beef, but I have to say, I think I may like this easy Mongolian chicken even better. The chicken is perfectly crispy on the edges and the sauce has the perfect balance of flavors.
I recently ordered Mongolian chicken at my local Chinese restaurant instead of my go-to Mongolian beef, and boy am I hooked. I decided I needed to learn how to make this dish at home, and it’s been on constant rotation in our house ever since.
How do you make Mongolian chicken?
This recipe starts with thin pieces of chicken breast. I recommend partially freezing your chicken breasts to make them easier to slice. You can cube your chicken if that’s easier, but I think the long thin slices are better because they have more surface area for the sauce to cling to. The chicken is coated in cornstarch and stir fried until crispy.
What is Mongolian sauce made of?
The crispy chicken pieces are coated in Mongolian sauce which is a combination of soy sauce, sesame oil and brown sugar. This dish also gets its flavor from the garlic, ginger and green onions that are added in during the cooking process.
Tips for Mongolian chicken
I keep this dish true to the restaurant version by just including chicken and green onions in the sauce. You can absolutely add more vegetables if you like, some great choices are
- Zucchini
- Water chestnuts
- Sliced carrots
- Broccoli
- Mushrooms
- Red peppers
I typically serve Mongolian chicken over steamed rice, but it’s also great over zucchini noodles or cauliflower rice if you’re looking to watch your carbs. If you’re not watching your carbs, try it with a side of chow mein.
If you’re not a fan of chicken breast, feel free to use chicken thighs in this dish. Or try something completely different and use shrimp instead of chicken, I’ve done that before and it’s fabulous. Regardless of how you choose to serve it, Mongolian chicken is sure to be a hit! My kids like it so much that they even ask to have it for lunch the next day.
More asian dishes you’ll enjoy
- Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- Pepper Steak
- Slow Cooker Orange Chicken
- Homemade Egg Rolls
Mongolian Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup + 2 teaspoons cornstarch divided use
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup green onions cut into 1 inch pieces
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place the chicken and 1/4 cup cornstarch in a resealable plastic bag, shake to coat evenly.
- Heat the vegetable oil in a large pan over high heat
- Add the chicken to the pan in a single layer and season to taste with salt and pepper (keeping in mind the sauce has plenty of salt in it!).
- Cook for 3-4 minutes per side or until browned. Cook in multiple batches if needed.
- Remove the chicken from the pan and place on a plate lined with paper towels
- Add the garlic and ginger to the pan and cook for 30 seconds. Add the soy sauce, sesame oil, water and brown sugar to the pan and bring to a simmer.
- Mix the 2 teaspoons of cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of cold water. Add the cornstarch to the sauce and bring to a boil; boil for 30-60 seconds until just thickened.
- Add the chicken and green onions to the pan and toss to coat with the sauce. Serve over rice if desired.
D says
Very good. Guests loved it. Doubled the chicken but quadrupled the sauce. The sauce was the best. My vegetarian daughter took some sauce to put on her rice.
Sarah says
can I use regular white sugar instead of brown sugar
Sara says
I think it should be fine but I haven’t tested it!
Irja says
Really good and I like that I didn’t have to buy too many new ingredients, so the meal was fairly cheap, but so much of the paper towels ended up in the sauce because they stuck to the chicken :(((( If (when) I do this again I’ll just set the chicken aside on a plate and maybe dab it with towels before adding it to the stew, because I really couldn’t remove most of the paper :/// Luckily I only cook for myself so I didn’t have to seem stupid in front of anyone else haha
Michelle says
This was really good; passed my Asian dad’s standards and he lives and breathes Chinese food. Adding other vegetables like pepper and broccoli is a really good idea too! Thank you for a recipe that used up my chicken!
Karen says
I served this dish over cauliflower rice. Delicious. Definitely a repeat. Thanks for the recipe !
Leah says
Thanks for the great recipe. I loved it!
Travis says
Made this tonight, it came out delicious, only thing I added was dried Szechuan peppers to kick it up a notch. I added them with the garlic and ginger all together.
Veronica says
This was truly amazing! Thanks so much, will def be making this again for my family.
Cathy Jacobo says
How thin do you slice the chicken breast
Sara says
1/8 inch thick!
summer says
Can you make this in the air fryer?
Sara says
I’m not sure, I haven’t tested it that way!
Chery l says
I’m not a big fan of ginger, would this be just as good without the ginger? Or is the ginger a must?
Sara says
You can omit it if needed!
Lindsey says
I Love all of your Asian recipes but this is my favorite so far! I followed the recipe exactly and it turned out SO yummy! I froze my chicken for about an hour before slicing and it made a huge difference. My husband said this one is restaurant quality and I agree! I will double this next time for leftovers as we licked the pan clean!
TB says
I’m not a very good cook and I’ve never been brave enough to try and make an Asian dish but I tried this one. Followed the recipe exactly, super easy, super delicious! Better than I can get at my local restaurant. Instructions were easy to follow, not too many ingredients and tasted great! I’ve never cooked a dish from a recipe and have it turn out exactly like the picture! Your my new go to for meal ideas.