Better Than Takeout Sesame Chicken

Twice-fried chicken bites coated in a glossy glaze of honey, soy sauce and sesame, to serve with white rice and broccoli.

On the night a craving for Chinese takeout hits, this is often what you order. The golden bites crackle as you bite into them, then the honey and soy sauce glaze sticks to your fingers just enough, while the warm aroma of sesame rises from the bowl.

It’s mild, with no chili, and is eaten steaming hot over white rice with a little broccoli. Made at home, it reaches the table while the crust is still crisp under the sauce.

What Is Sesame Chicken?

Sesame chicken is a classic of Chinese restaurants in the United States. Bite-size pieces of chicken are coated in a thin cornstarch batter, fried twice, then covered in a sweet-and-savory glaze of honey and light soy sauce. The sesame comes in at the end, with sesame oil poured into the sauce and sesame seeds scattered over the top.

Its cousins are General Tso’s chicken, which is spicier, and orange chicken, which is tangier: the same fried chicken with a different sauce. In English, you order it by the name “sesame chicken.”

A Product of New York’s Chinese Restaurants

Sesame chicken descends from General Tso’s chicken. That Hunanese dish, created in Taiwan in the 1950s by chef Peng Chang-kuei, reached New York in the early 1970s. Cooks there made it much sweeter for American customers, and sauce-coated fried chicken became a mainstay of the country’s Chinese restaurants.

Restaurants quickly realized that the same fried chicken base could carry several different sauces. Sesame chicken is the mildest version, for those who want the crunch without the heat.

It’s served in takeout containers with white rice and steamed broccoli, sometimes with Cantonese fried rice or Chinese egg drop soup on the side. It belongs to Chinese cuisine as it has adapted to American tastes.

The Main Ingredients in Sesame Chicken

Boneless chicken thigh stays tender through double frying, whereas breast meat dries out more quickly. The batter combines cornstarch, a little flour, egg white, light soy sauce, white pepper and water. The cornstarch gives a light, crunchy crust, the flour helps it hold together, and the egg white makes it cling to the meat.

Honey and brown sugar give the sauce its sweetness and shine, while soy sauce brings salt and umami. Ketchup adds acidity, color and body, and rice vinegar cuts through the greasiness of the frying. Shaoxing wine adds depth, and a grated garlic clove livens everything up.

To finish, sesame oil provides the aroma and the seeds the crunch. Green onion adds a fresh note against the sweetness of the glaze.

Technical Tips for Good Sesame Chicken

The crispiness comes from double frying. The first fry, at around 165 to 170 °C, cooks the chicken. The second, at 190 °C and very brief, dries out the crust, which then stays crunchy once it’s in the sauce.

The sauce boils just long enough to turn glossy and sticky: if it cooks too long, it smells of burnt sugar and turns bitter. The chicken spends only a few seconds in it, then you serve it right away, while the crust is still crunchy. A wok or a large frying pan gives you room to coat everything without crushing the pieces.