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Mongolian Chicken is super popular Chinese American takeout dish! The ultra crispy chicken is nicely seasoned, juicy, and coated in a classic sweet and savory sauce that pairs deliciously with some freshly steamed rice.
If you’re a fan of Mongolian Chicken, you’ll never need to order takeout again after trying this recipe!
Watch the Mongolian Chicken Recipe Video Below!
Ingredients for Mongolian Chicken
This Mongolian Chicken recipe is such a winner and perfect for a weeknight meal with a freshly steamed bowl of rice! Here is what you’ll need for the recipe:
- Chicken Thigh (You can also use chicken breast for this recipe)
- Light Soy Sauce (low sodium recommended)
- Shaoxing wine
- Kosher Salt
- White Pepper
- Baking Soda
- Cornstarch
- Neutral Oil
- Chicken Stock – I always recommend Kettle & Fire – use code CJPINS for 20% off your order here!
- Brown Sugar
- Scallions
- Dried Red Chilis
- Ginger
- Garlic
INGREDIENTS TIPS
CHICKEN
I like to use chicken thigh in this recipe but if you prefer chicken breast, feel free to substitute here!
NEUTRAL OIL
My favorite neutral oil is avocado oil, but you can also use canola or vegetable oil! I don’t use olive oil when cooking Chinese food for two reasons: 1. It has a low burning point and 2. I find that the flavor profile does not usually go with the dish.
Mongolian Chicken: Recipe Instructions
Cut the Chicken
The first step in making this recipe is cutting the chicken into 2″ pieces. Cut the chicken into uniform pieces so they cook evenly when we fry them.
Next, place the sliced chicken into a bowl with light soy sauce, shaoxing wine, kosher salt, white pepper, baking soda, cornstarch and neutral oil. Mix well with your hands and let marinate for at least 20 minutes. While the chicken marinates, mince garlic and ginger as well as cut scallions into 3″ pieces. Set them all aside along with dried red chilis depending on how spicy you want the dish (I used about 7 chilis and it was perfect for me – maybe a 6/10 on the heat scale).
Next, mix the sauce by combining chicken stock (I always use Kettle & Fire – get 20% off your order when you use code CJPINS!), light soy sauce, brown sugar, white pepper, and cornstarch. I always like to premix my sauce to have it ready to go during the fast cooking process.
Cook the chicken
Heat 4 tablespoons of neutral oil (I prefer avocado oil) in a pan or wok over high heat until just smoking. Add the chicken, in batches if needed, for 2-3 minutes until golden brown and remove and set the chicken pieces aside.
Once the chicken is cooked, remove the excess oil, leaving about 2 tablespoons, then sauté the minced garlic and ginger for 30 seconds until fragrant.
Add the rest of the aromatics
Add scallions and dried red chilis and stir fry for another minute.
Finish the Mongolian Chicken
Once the aromatics and chilis are stir fried, it’s time to finish the dish! Add back the cooked chicken pieces, then pour the sauce along the outer edge of the wok. Doing so will allow for some caramelization of the sauce against the hot wok.
Mix together and stir fry over high heat until the sauce has become thickened and glossy like this! Now you’re ready to serve with some freshly steamed rice.
If you liked this Mongolian Chicken recipe, check out some of the most popular Chinese Take-Out recipes on the blog!
RECIPE TIPS
PREMIX YOUR SAUCE
The cooking process for the sauce is FAST so it’s a great idea to premix your sauce together, then add it straight into the pan! The corn starch will help thicken the sauce into that velvety texture that Chinese restaurants made so famous.
SUCCESS IS IN THE PREP
For a recipe that comes together extremely quickly, the key to pulling this recipe off successfully is having your ingredients prepped and in bowls right next to your wok or pan! Have your premixed sauce, chicken, and vegetables ready and easily accessible during the cooking process.
Mongolian Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken thigh, boneless & skinless, cut to 2" pieces
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce, low sodium
- 1 tbsp shaoxing wine
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp white pepper
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 tbsp neutral oil
Sauce
- 1/3 cup chicken stock
- 1/2 cup light soy sauce, low sodium
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
Aromatics
- 6 scallions, cut to 3" pieces
- 7 dried red chilis
- 1 tbsp ginger, minced
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
Instructions
- Cut chicken thigh into equal 2" pieces and marinate with light soy sauce, shaoxing wine, kosher salt, white pepper, baking soda, cornstarch, and neutral oil. Mix and marinate for 20 minutes.
- Cut scallions into 3" pieces and minced garlic and ginger.
- In a small bowl, mix together chicken stock, light soy sauce, brown sugar, white pepper, and cornstarch.
- Heat 4 tbsp of neutral oil in a large pan or wok over high heat and cook chicken until golden brown (2-3 minutes) in batches if needed. Remove and set aside.
- Remove excess oil, leaving about 2 tbsp then saute garlic and ginger for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add scallions and dried red chilis and stir fry for another minute.
- Add back chicken and the premixed sauce. Continue stir frying and mixing over high heat until the sauce has thickened and serve with freshly steamed rice. Enjoy!
made it for dinner last night and family said this was the best 🙂 easy weeknight dinner
Awesome to hear! Thanks Pal – if you could leave a 5 star review I would really appreciate it!
Sure. i also sent the recipe link to a bunch of friends since the pic looked tempting.
Family favorite
A go to recipe in my house now!
I love a good chicken stir fry with a spice kick! So easy to make and I had all the ingredients already
Perfect for a family dinner.
Give this recipe 5 stars
This is one of the favorite Cj’s recipe
This is one of my favorites dishes! I made cjs recipe and my family loved it! Plus it’s an easy dinner dish
This dish was incredible
This recipe was delicious! I didn’t have green onions or chilis so I added some red pepper flakes to add a touch of heat. Accidentally used regular soy sauce instead of low sodium (my mistake), next time will do low sodium because it was too salty with the regular. Overall would definitely make again!
Just tried it today – delicious! So easy and it really is better than takeout.