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This simple Spicy Sesame Chicken and Ginger Rice is about to become your new go-to meal. Easy homemade Asian inspired chicken, tossed in a gingery, sweet, spicy, and extra sticky soy pomegranate sauce with toasted sesame seeds and broccoli. Serve over gingery rice for sticky chicken made quicker than any take-out meal…and healthier too.
December is the busiest month of the year. The days might be short, but our lists are a mile long. Between, work, family, and holiday festivities, it’s a lot. And I know for so many that dinner can quickly become an after thought.
I get it, but that’s why I love recipes this. It’s sticky Asian inspired chicken, but made at home, and with very littler effort.
When my brother Red was visiting last week he asked for a spicy Asian dinner. I knew exactly what I wanted to make him. And fortunately, it turned out perfect and everyone loved it!
Here are the steps
I wanted to make sure my “sticky sauce” would really stick to the chicken. So start out by coating the chicken in a bit of flour.
This is a very, very light coating, but it’s just enough to help all that sticky sauce actually stick. Once you’ve coated the chicken in flour, arrange it to one side of a large greased baking sheet. Then drizzle generously with sesame oil or olive oil. This is your answer to really getting the chicken crispy and creating the perfect “oven fried” chicken.
Next, the broccoli. I kept the broccoli basic, just oil, salt, and pepper. You’ll want to get the broccoli roasted and extra crispy in the oven. And since the chicken cooks at such a high temperature, the broccoli has just the right amount of time to roast, soften, turn crisp, and lightly char on the outside.
Delicious, especially when tossed together with the chicken and sauce.
The sauce
The sauce is really the key to this chicken. It’s honestly so addicting. Sweet, tangy, a touch spicy, and once boiled down, super sticky. I love to use pomegranate juice for the perfect amount of sweetness. I know it might sound odd, but the pomegranate juice adds sweetness, tanginess, and a deep dark color too. It’s one of my favorite ingredients to use in Asian inspired recipes.
The sauce takes only a few minutes to thicken up on the stove. It’s usually ready by the time the chicken has finished cooking.
Then just toss the chicken into the sauce with sesame seeds and let the sauce thicken around the chicken.
While everything is cooking, make a quick pot of gingery rice and then serve the chicken over the rice.
Nothing fancy here, just simple cooking. A delicious take-out-style meal made at home in way less than an hour – which we love!
Looking for other Asian style recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Ginger Sesame Chicken Potstickers
Lastly, if you make this Spicy Sesame Chicken and Ginger Rice, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Crispy Sesame Chicken and Ginger Rice
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 450 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breasts, cut into 2 inch cubes
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour (or gluten free all-purpose flour)
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 cups broccoli florets
- 2 shallots, sliced
- 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil or sesame oil
- 1/2 cup pomegranate juice
- 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 4 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, use more or less to taste
- 1 star anise
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds
- green onions, for serving
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 475° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or grease with oil.2. Add the chicken, egg, and a pinch of pepper to a bowl. Toss to combine. Add the flour to another bowl. Dredge the chicken in batches through the flour, tossing to coat. Place the chicken on one side of the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of oil. Add the broccoli and shallots to the other side of the pan and toss with 2 more tablespoons of oil, salt, and pepper. Bake for 12 minutes. Toss the broccoli, flip the chicken, and return to the oven another 3-5 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.3. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, combine the pomegranate juice, soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar, garlic, ginger, star anise, bay leaf, and red pepper flakes. Set over medium-high heat and bring the sauce to a boil. Boil 5-8 minutes, until the sauce thickens and reduces by about 1/3. Stir in the chicken, broccoli, and sesame seeds. Cook until the sauce coats the chicken. 4. Serve the chicken, broccoli, and sauce over bowls of ginger rice (recipe in notes) topped with green onions.
Notes
Ginger Rice: Combine 2 cups water in a medium pot. Bring to a boil. Add 1 cup basmati rice, 1 inch grated fresh ginger, 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, and a pinch of salt. Stir to combine, cover, then turn the heat down to the lowest setting possible. Allow the rice to cook 10 minutes on low, then turn the heat off completely and let the rice sit, covered, for another 15-20 minutes (don't take any peeks inside!). Remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork.
This post was originally published on December 2, 2021
Looks great! Wishing I could post a picture. Delish!!
Everything was perfect. I doubled the sauce and it was the perfect amount!
Hey Martha,
Happy Sunday! Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Made this tonight and was disappointed with the result. The chicken was tough…as was the rice. The sauce was very tasty….unfortunately too many steps for a marginal result. ?
Hey Cheryl,
So sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy the recipe. What kind of chicken did you use? Was there anything you adjusted in the recipe? Please let me know how I can help for next time! xTieghan
I made this tonight and it was delicious! I left out the star anise and bay leaves as I didn’t have any, but I didn’t feel like it was lacking any flavor. I made 2 cups of the ginger rice in my instapot and I can’t get over how good it is! Very grateful for your recipes. Thank you!
Hey Lucie,
Happy Sunday! Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! xTieghan
This was very good but it took me almost an hour, not 30 mins!
It took me an hour as well! But very tasty and worth it.
Hey Kelly,
Happy Sunday! Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Is the chicken breast skinless or skin on? Thanks!
Hi Jennifer,
For this recipe I used boneless, skinless chicken breast. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
Is there anything else I could substitute for the pomegranate juice?
Hey Veronica,
Orange juice would also work well in place of the pomegranate juice. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
What is best way to reduce salt?
Hi Julie,
Try using low sodium soy sauce or even coconut aminos. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
Parchment paper will burn at that temperature. The suggestion to use parchment paper should be deleted.
Hey Sheila,
Sorry I’ve never had this issue, I wouldn’t recommend it if that was a concern. Let me know if you give the recipe a try! xTieghan
I used parchment paper and it darkened around the edges but didn’t catch fire or anything
Sounds about right:)
Hey there, can you sub pomegranate juice for pomegranate molasses? I have the molasses on hand and if so how much if it can I use?
Hey Samra,
I’ve not tried this swap, but let me know if you give it a try! I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan
I made this exactly as written except for the omission of the star anise as I didn’t have any. It was excellent! My partner is a picky eater (he will deny it til the end, but it’s true) and he absolutely loved it too which was great. Also, why have I not been cooking my rice like that forever? It was perfect. Thank you for the recipe!
Hey Sandy,
Awesome! It’s so great to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! Have the best weekend❄️ xTieghan
Hi there! Could you provide any recommendations for substitutions for the wheat flour and egg? My son is allergic to both. Thanks so much!
Hey there, can you substitute the pomegranate juice for pomegranate molasses? If so how much?
Hey Sam,
I haven’t tried this, so I honestly and not sure of the results or measurements. Let me know if you give the recipe a try! xTieghan
Hi Olivia,
The flour and eggs really create the crust and coating to the chicken, I haven’t tried to sub these with anything else. You could just skip them and see if you get the sauce thick enough to try to coat the chicken. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try! xTieghan
Hi, Olivia!
I have had success thinning out vegan mayo a little in place of eggs. Then dredge 3:1 with rice flour & cornstarch.
I’m going to try this recipe and method with cubed tofu to accommodate the 2 vegans & the one with celiac.
This sounds just wonderful and I’m going to make it. Can another fruit juice be substituted for the pomegranate juice. I’m not a fan of pomegranate juice and hate to buy an entire bottle for 1/2 cup. Thanks so much for your help. I look forward to your recipes everyday on Instagram. Thanks again!!
Hey Susan,
Orange juice would work well to use in place of the pom juice. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
This was amazing. We loved it. I had to use corn syrup since I didn’t have honey. Will make this again!
Hey Annette,
Awesome! It’s so great to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! Have the best weekend❄️ xTieghan
I am making this right now and I cannot figure out where the last 2T of oil go? I used 2 for chicken and 2 for broccoli which makes 4, however the recipe calls for 6!
Hey Shannon,
2 tablespoons can be used in step 1 for your sheet pan. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know how it turns out! xTieghan
Excellent recipe and blend of flavors, Tieghan! Either rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar would work equally well in this recipe. No need for debate about this. The end result of acid/fat /sweet balance works with either. Home cooks need to taste, try, and perfect their own recipes without relying on others to do that for them.
I did this according to instructions and it was excellent.
Hey Aline,
Awesome! It’s so great to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! Have the best weekend❄️ xTieghan