A quick and saucy Baked Sesame Chicken dish you can whip up in a hurry. The flavor is excellent and the sauce is simple, this sesame chicken can’t be beat!
I love a good sesame chicken. I worked at a Chinese restaurant all through high school and had my fair share of all of the “traditional” Chinese dishes. Orange chicken, kung pao chicken, general tso’s chicken (try it in the crockpot with my Slow Cooker General Tso’s Chicken recipe!), and yes – sesame chicken. To be honest, I have some pretty high expectations for sesame chicken. I guess you could call me a sesame chicken snob. We’re friends, you can call me a snob.
The thing about a lot of sesame chicken recipes I’ve tasted, is that they just don’t have enough sauce. I’m a sauce person, I need a bucket of sauce with every meal, especially ones of the Asian variety. I eat rice the way most people eat pasta and I needs lots and lots of sauce on my Chinese dishes to seep down into the spaces between the rice. Weird? No way! I just know what I like, and I like a mother load of sauce on my sesame chicken.
This chicken is perfect for me, it has plenty of sauce, lots of flavor, and comes together so easily. It’s just lightly braised on the stove before being tossed into the over for a good 25 minutes. I think that letting it cook like that in the oven helps to get the chicken to absorb the flavors of the sauce, without getting soggy – I love it. If you don’t have a go-to sesame chicken recipe, this is the answer to your prayers. And if you do have one, try this one anyway, there’s a good chance it’ll steal your heart!
What people are saying about this Baked Sesame Chicken
“This was AMAZING! I had my guy look through your visual recipe index and pick out something that looked and sounded good. He chose this one, so we tried it first. And as always, he complained… But ONLY that I didn’t make rice. Other that that, he said he loved it and would eat it again — no changes required!! Seriously a miracle! You are a SAINT for saving our homemade dinner dilemmas and we’re probably going to try just about every other Chinese recipe you have. Because I refuse to go out to the sub-par restaurants around here when I can cook your fabulous recipes and make him happy instead. So thank you!!! 
” – Amy
“Unbelievably good and more wholesome than the takeout version as this is baked instead of frying. I skipped 2 tablespoons sugar and added 2 of a little teriyaki sauce. Yummy!” – Regin
“My husband absolutely loves this! He asks for it all the time!” – Stephanie
“This is absolutely delicious! Though slightly too sweet. But I loved it and will definitely make it again.” – Shan
If you liked this, you’ll love my Sticky Sesame Chicken recipe!
Baked Sesame Chicken
Ingredients
- 3-4 chicken breasts - cut into bite size pieces
- 1 cup corn starch
Sauce
- 6 tablespoons honey
- 4 tablespoons ketchup
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons white vinegar
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon cold water
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- sesame seeds, for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 and spray a 9×13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- In a bowl, whisk together all sauce ingredients, set aside.
- Add chicken and 1 cup corn starch to a large ziplock bag. Seal and shake to coat chicken. Transfer chicken to a large pan or skillet drizzled with oil. Saute chicken over medium high heat until browned (2-4 minutes).
- Toss chicken in the prepared sauce. Transfer to baking dish. Bake for 20-25 minutes until chicken is cooked through. Serve with sesame seeds and green onions for garnish if desired. Enjoy!
No Sesamie oil?
Hi, this is Rob from the Netherlands. Made this chicken today and it was delicious!
This one is staying on the menu 😄
So excited to hear that you loved this one, Rob!! Hello from all the way here in America! Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
What great RECIPE! I have a family of three, and my child is not a fan of most meats – especially those that have not been grilled. Not the best scenario since we live in the mid atlantic region.
Still, this easy, delicious RECIPE is perfect for a WEEKNIGHT when time is a struggle, but tasty enough to serve company!
(sorry for all caps. My computer would not let me change).
Way to go, Pamela! I totally get the picky children thing- I’ve got a few myself! I am excited to hear that you and your family enjoyed this recipe! Thanks for sharing your feedback.
Can you sub in chicken thighs or tenderloins indtead of breasts? Chicken breastd jist make my skin crawl and i woild mivh rather sub In a different Part of the chicken
you totally could!!
IF you braisE and bake in either a dutch oven pot or a ceramic cast iRon skillet in lieu of using a baking dish, does that chaNge the Texture of the chicken?
I don’t believe it would alter it much! In fact, I prefer to cook most of my dishes in a cast iron skillet 🙂