Skip the takeout for a night and enjoy this sweet, spicy, and tangy firecracker chicken from your own kitchen. This recipe does not require deep frying and is incredibly easy and delicious!
What is firecracker chicken?
Firecracker chicken is a Chinese takeout staple! It's spicy, sweet, tangy, and most importantly - delicious! This dish is typically pieces of deep-fried chicken covered in a thick bright orange sauce. It's sort of like a slightly spicier version of orange chicken. It's found at many Chinese restaurants and even on the menu at Panda Express.
Firecracker chicken
This firecracker chicken is a homemade version of our favorite Chinese takeout dish! It's sweet, spicy, and pairs well with rice, quinoa, or lettuce wraps. Made with simple ingredients, this recipe is also nutritious! If you're still not sold, the best part about this chicken is that it is so easy to make! There's no deep frying involved - all you need is a slow cooker. This dish is similar to my healthy orange chicken but has an extra kick!
What ingredients do I need?
Like I mentioned, this recipe is easy! All you need to do is add chicken to the slow cooker, mix the sauce ingredients together, dump it over the chicken, and it’ll be ready in a few hours. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Chicken breast – This recipe calls for 1.5 lbs of chicken breast (or about 3 large breasts). I’ve used raw and frozen chicken for this recipe and both work.
- Corn starch – Before adding sauce to the recipe, you will coat the chicken breast pieces in some corn starch. Doing this will help thicken the sauce and coat the chicken.
- Buffalo hot sauce - This will bring the tang and heat!
- Honey - Adding in some honey will provide sweetness and a thicker consistency for the sauce.
- Vegetable oil - To help thicken the sauce
- Rice vinegar - This mild, slightly sweet ingredient is a staple in Asian dishes
- Red pepper flakes - These are key for the extra spice!
- Garlic powder - Adding some garlic will provide great flavor for the sauce.
- Optional garnishes: chopped green onions, sesame seeds, red pepper flakes
What equipment do I need for this recipe?
The only equipment you need for this recipe is either a skillet or slow cooker.
What is the process?
Here's how easy this recipe is:
- Gather all ingredients.
- Cut the chicken breasts into 1 inch cubes.
- Add ¼ cup corn starch to a bowl. Coat the chicken with the corn starch.
- To make in a slow cooker:
- Spray the slow cooker with a cooking oil.
- Add the coated chicken cubes to the slow cooker.
- Make the sauce by mixing all of the ingredients together in a bowl.
- Pour the sauce over the chicken in the slow cooker.
- Cook on low for 4 hours or until the internal temperature of the chicken is 165 degrees.
- To make on a stove:
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Cover the skillet with cooking spray.
- Cook for about 10 minutes or until chicken is 165 degrees internally.
- Add half of the sauce mixture to the skillet and stir.
- After 30 seconds, turn the heat to low so that the chicken and sauce can simmer together for about 4 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- Repeat with the other half of the chicken and sauce.
- Stir and serve with green onions, sesame seeds, and additional red pepper flakes. Enjoy!
How should I eat this?
This firecracker chicken can be enjoyed in so many ways! Here are some ideas of how you can incorporate the chicken:
- Wraps
- Rice
- Salads
- Quinoa
- Bowls
What is firecracker sauce made of?
The firecracker sauce is the most important part of this recipe! It's made of 6 ingredients to create a sweet, spicy, and tangy coating for the chicken.
- buffalo hot sauce
- honey
- vegetable oil
- rice vinegar
- red pepper flakes
- garlic powder
What is the best way to season chicken?
Making a sauce or marinade is such an easy way to season chicken! This firecracker chicken recipe uses a simple sauce to flavor the chicken. Adding an easy sauce is such an easy way to spice up your protein!
What goes with spicy chicken?
My favorite pairings with spicy chicken are:
- Roasted broccoli
- Crispy brussel sprouts
- Brown rice
- Fried rice
- Asparagus
Looking for something similar?
If you love slow cooker recipes, try these recipes:
Can I have the recipe?
If you try this recipe and love it, please rate it and me know your thoughts! I hope you enjoy this firecracker chicken as much as I do.
Firecracker Chicken
Equipment
- Slow Cooker
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into 1 inch cubes
- ¼ cup corn starch
Sauce
- ½ cup buffalo hot sauce
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Optional Garnishes
- green onions chopped
- sesame seeds
- red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Gather all ingredients.
- Cut the chicken breasts into 1 inch cubes.
- Add ¼ cup corn starch to a bowl. Coat the chicken with the corn starch.
- To make in a slow cooker: Spray the slow cooker with a cooking oil. Add the coated chicken cubes to the slow cooker.Make the sauce by mixing all of the ingredients together in a bowl.Pour the sauce over the chicken in the slow cooker. Cook on low for 4 hours or until the internal temperature of the chicken is 165 degrees.
- To make on a stove: Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cover the skillet with cooking spray. Cook for about 10 minutes or until chicken is 165 degrees internally. Add half of the sauce mixture to the skillet and stir. After 30 seconds, turn the heat to low so that the chicken and sauce can simmer together for about 4 minutes. Stir occasionally. Repeat with the other half of the chicken and sauce.
- Stir and serve with green onions, sesame seeds, and additional red pepper flakes. Enjoy!
Brie says
It was so good! I ironically didn’t have time to slow cook it so I air fried it - so next time I’ll do your cooking way but the flavor was mmmmm delicious!!
Sharon says
We made your firecracker chicken. Yummy! It's definitely a'spicy, which my husband and I enjoy, but you can easily tone the heat down by adding less buffalo sauce, a little more honey, a dollop of sour cream. We subbed arrowroot flour for cornstarch and it worked great. We also oomphed it up by adding red, green, and yellow pepper strips (thank you Trader Joe’s for your frozen convenience), and pineapple tidbits to lightly tamper the spicy for our daughter. Adding these extra items also helps stretttch the meal to feed more people. Our family designated this a winner! We like meals that are simple to put together, but that have complex flavors. We call this "Jordolicious" 🙂
Shayna Pena says
Wonderful flavor and made in the slow cooker!!! It doesn't get better than that.
Chelsea Dirlam says
This recipe is amazing! It's spicy but so good! Even my husband loved it!
Seth says
So good! Threw this over some rice and steamed broccoli. I swear, Jordo is making healthy eating legitimately enjoyable for me!
Amanda says
Jordan makes meal prepping easy and delicious!! I love this chicken over some jasmine rice served with broccoli the best!! If you love spice, you’ll love this!
Courtnee says
Sooooo yummy!!!
Tori says
Absolutely delicious! Will be a new staple in our house!
Liane R says
Another awesome recipe! A little bit of heat in this chicken but we love that! Quick and easy to make even after a long day. We had some left over grilled pineapple so threw it in and server over cauliflower fried rice. Yum!
Melissa says
So good! I decided to air fry and it turned out perfectly! I made half the batch with half the heat for my kids and they loved it! We certainly had no leftovers.
Yvette says
So good! Make this on the stovetop and it is super easy. It can be spicy but in a good way.
Steph says
This was SO yummy and easy!! I already had all the ingredients in my pantry so it was a no brainer! I ate it with rice and broccoli *chef’s kiss*
Ellen says
This is one of my husband's favorites, and mine too! It's so simple to make, and I love feeling like I am getting spicy takeout without too much effort - this is on regular rotation for us!
Amy says
Quick, easy, and definitely hit my take-out craving! If you’re not a huge fan of spicy, I would omit the red pepper flakes and maybe add a bit more honey! Another amazing Jordy recipe in our rotation.
Jeri says
My family loves spicy food! This recipe is fantastic!