Airfryer Mongolian Chicken, made with crispy airfryer chicken tossed in this sweet and savoury sauce makes for a great healthier fakeway that’s lower in sugar than traditional Mongolian Beef.
This Recipe was adapted from The Woks of Life
What is Mongolian Chicken?
This recipe is inspired by a Taiwanese dish called “Mongolian Beef” but I made it using chicken because I don’t eat beef. Mongolian Beef is super popular in America too, particularly P.F. Changs so I had to find a way to join in on the fun. Mongolian BBQ is popular in Taiwan and when this recipe is transferred to Chinese American cuisine, it consists of thin slices of meat and a sweet and savory sauce that is typically made with hoisin sauce, soy sauce, and brown sugar.
I typically serve it over rice and garnish with green onions and sesame seeds. It is a delicious and easy-to-make dish that is perfect for a quick weeknight dinner. The combination of sweet and savory flavors, along with the tender chicken make it a dish that everyone is sure to love. The best part? All the ingredients should already be in your pantry or fridge! If not, a quick run to the grocery will fix that as the ingredients are not hard to find. Trust me, this is the perfect quick and delicious weeknight dinner!
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
It’s so easy to fall in love with this flavor-packed meal! This easy-to-make recipe has some key features that make it stand out from other stir fry dishes. Here are a few reasons you’ll love it:
- The texture! This Mongolian chicken is extremely crispy even though it’s not fried.
- The sauce! This is the key to making the distinct sweet and savoury flavor profile. The sautéed garlic, ginger, and chili infuse the soy sauce with a kiss of sweetness from the hoisin sauce.
- You can make it exactly how YOU like it unlike getting takeout.
Tips and Variations
It is sooo easy to manipulate this dish to your personal preferences! Here are a few ideas along with some tricks to make it taste even better than it already is:
- For a more sweet sauce, add 1-2 tablespoons of sweet chili sauce.
- For a citrus-y twist, top with orange zest!
- Meal prep by making the sauce ahead of time and storing it!
- Switch gears and turn the recipe into a stir fry by adding your choice of vegetables!
- Be sure to not cut your chicken too small or it will dry out!
- Substitute the chicken with tofu if you want a vegetarian option!
How long can I store the sauce?
The sauce can be make and store in the fridge for up to 3 days. When you’re ready to eat, heat it up in the microwave and add water if needed to loosen it up a little. Toss over the crispy chicken!
Print
Airfryer Mongolian Chicken
- Total Time: 25 minutes
Description
Airfryer Mongolian Chicken, made with crispy airfryer chicken tossed in this sweet and savoury sauce makes for a great healthier fakeway that’s lower in sugar than traditional Mongolian Beef.
Ingredients
Airfryer Chicken
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs, thinly sliced
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- salt
The Sauce
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 5 cloves garlic (grated)
- 1/2 inch ginger (grated)
- 1 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/2 cup broth (chicken or vegetable)
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1.5–2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2–3 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 2 dried red chili peppers (optional) cut off bottom
- 2 tsp cornstarch mixed with 1 tbsp water
- 2 scallions, sliced separate the white and green parts
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 400 F. In a bowl, combine the chicken slices with soy sauce, salt, baking powder and cornstarch. Mix until just coated, don’t overmix it. Airfry for 8-10 minutes.
- While the chicken is cooking, make the sauce. In a bowl, mix together the brown sugar, water, rice vinegar, soy sauce and hoisin sauce.
- Heat the sesame oil in a pan and sauté the ginger, garlic and the white part of the scallions. Once they are golden, pour the mixed sauce from Step 2 into the saucepan with the chili peppers. Bring to a boil and simmer on low for 5-6 minutes.
- Mix the cornstarch with the water in a bowl and pour into the saucepan. Simmer until the sauce thickens and add in the crispy airfryer chicken. Toss well and top with the green part of the scallions.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
Can this be made in the oven as opposed to an air fryer?
yes it can! you might just need to bake it longer and flip halfway
This was really good and pretty easy to make. I used too much garlic (most recipes don’t call for nearly enough for my taste so I added extra, but it looks like Ramya accounted for enough! Will make true to the recipe next time) – other than my mistake, the taste was really good. I added a bit of sweet chili sauce, and next time I think I’ll try the orange zest recommendation to round out the flavor differently.
My only gripe with this, is that it was difficult clean up for being an air fryer recipe. The coating on the chicken made it stick, so flipping the pieces was a more involved task, and cleaning out the cornstarch mixture from all the holes in the air fryer insert took a while. Probably easier if you have one of those silicone liners. I’ll try more of a dry-fry on the stove top next time and see if I can still crisp it up nicely without the mess 🙂
★★★★