Perfect Pairs: 8 BEST Side Dishes for Sweet and Sour Chicken

Sweet and sour chicken is a popular Chinese dish that many people enjoy.

The flavors are sweet, tangy, savory, and served with rice or noodles.

The dish was originally made in the US by Cantonese immigrants who used to work in the Chinatowns of large cities like New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles.

They adapted their traditional cuisine to suit the tastes of American-born Chinese people.

Today, sweet and sour chicken is used as an indicator to see if a Chinese restaurant is any good.

Many restaurants are known for their “sweet & sour” dishes, making it difficult to say which one is the best.

When you have a craving for Chinese food, try making sweet and sour chicken at home.

Now that you know the basics read up on our recommendations for serving with your delicious chicken dish.

Why Consider Serving Side Dishes for Sweet and Sour Chicken?

Sweet and Sour Chicken is a delicious Asian dish that is sure to please your whole family.

It’s sweet, it’s sour, and did we mention that it’s delicious? There are quite a few reasons that you should consider serving side dishes alongside this tasty dish.

1 – It’s a Crowd Pleaser.

Sweet and Sour Chicken is so delicious that it will be sure to please your whole family.

The sweet flavors of the chicken are perfectly balanced by the sour juices, making for a perfect balance of flavors.

Your kids will ask for seconds with this crowd-pleaser, and your whole family will be asking for more.

2 – Versatile and Easy to Enjoy.

The versatility and ease of making sweet and sour chicken make it a great dish for you and your family to enjoy together.

With only a few ingredients, you can have this dish on the table in no time at all.

And by serving side dishes with this dish, you will be able to please everyone’s preferences.

3 – Perfect for Sharing.

Who doesn’t love to share good food with family and friends? Sweet and sour chicken is a dish that can be perfectly paired with several side dishes, making it perfect for sharing at your next get-together.

Whether you are having an intimate dinner or a large party, sweet and sour chicken makes the ultimate meal.

What to Serve with Sweet and Sour Chicken? 8 BEST Side Dishes

Here are eight of the best side dishes to serve with your delicious sweet and sour chicken.

1 – Steamed White Rice

A staple dish in Asian cuisine, steamed white rice is a great dish to serve alongside sweet and sour chicken.

If you have time, it’s best to make the rice ahead of time by boiling two cups of water and one cup of white rice in a saucepan over medium heat for 20 minutes (or until the rice has absorbed all the liquid).

You can also use an electric rice cooker if you have one.

As for the flavor, plain old steamed white rice is a perfect choice – anything else might overpower your dish.

You can use basmati rice or bomba rice for this dish, as they are good choices to use when making steamed white rice.

2 – Candied Yams

Candied yams make a great side dish to serve with your sweet and sour chicken because they are naturally sweet.

This is perfect for serving kids or people who aren’t usually fans of the sour flavors in sweet and sour chicken.

They are also a great source of complex carbohydrates, so they will give you the energy to keep going throughout your day.

The best thing about yams is that they are super easy to cook.

You need to peel and boil them for 30 minutes, then drain and put them into a baking dish.

Make sure to drizzle brown sugar over the top before cooking at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes.

3 – Fried Rice

Another great Asian side dish, fried rice, is often served with sweet and sour chicken.

If you want to make it extra delicious, use a sweet and sour sauce as the base of the dish.

This is perfect because your chicken dish will infuse into your rice to make it even more flavorful.

You can also add other vegetables like carrots and peas.

Fried rice takes a bit longer to prepare, but once you finish cooking it, you will be rewarded with a delicious dish that your family and friends will love.

You can add leftover rice to this dish, but you should also go ahead and cook it in advance.

4 – Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Baked sweet potato fries make the perfect side dish to serve with your chicken because they are delicious.

This dish is great if you’re trying to eat healthily but still want something that tastes good.

They will satisfy your eat, and they go great with the sweet and sour chicken flavor.

Best of all, this dish is really easy to make.

You can either prepare these fries by hand, or you can use a food processor to make them for you.

All you need to do is cut up one large sweet potato into long fries and coat them in olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Then you need to bake them for 20 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

5 – Broccoli Stir Fry with Ginger and Sesame Seeds

Broccoli is a great vegetable to serve with sweet and sour chicken because it goes so well together.

If broccoli isn’t your favorite, you can also use carrots or green beans.

Just keep in mind that if you choose green beans, you will need to cook them first before serving them with the rest of the dish.

You can add this dish to your meal in place of the fried rice.

You will need to wash and trim both a crown of broccoli and a handful of green beans for this dish before cutting them into bite-sized pieces.

Then you need to heat some vegetable oil over medium-high heat and sauté the ginger and sesame seeds until everything is nice and fragrant.

You can add soy sauce or oyster sauce to this dish for extra flavor.

6 – Air Fryer Chinese Egg Rolls

If you’re looking for a great side dish to pair with your chicken, look no further than some delicious Chinese egg rolls.

This dish is perfect if you want something fried and crunchy.

Plus, egg rolls are easy to make, and they taste amazing.

You can use any egg roll wrappers you want, but most people prefer to use the thicker wrappers with this dish.

You will need a scoop of filling for each egg roll half – fillers usually include pork with cabbage, carrots, and jicama.

For a dipping sauce, fry up some garlic in sesame oil until it is nice and fragrant.

7 – Baked Zucchini Fries

Another great way to dress up a healthy side dish is that baked zucchini fries are delicious and go well with sweet and sour chicken.

You can also add them into your meal in place of the fried rice, but you may want to add some extra vegetables if you do that.

Zucchini fries are easy to make because all you have to do is cut up the zucchini into long strips, dredge them in egg and bread crumbs, then bake them for 20 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

You could also try adding a bit of cayenne pepper to the bread crumb mixture for a little bit of spice.

8 – Egg Drop Soup

Egg drop soup is a delicious, light meal.

It’s also great for pairing with sweet and sour chicken because the flavors go so well together.

This dish is quick to make, and you can prepare it in advance if needed.

You will need to beat some eggs before adding them to your hot broth, along with some green onions and salt.

You can prepare this dish in advance if need be, but you should heat the broth back up before serving.

It may sound complicated, but this dish is really easy to make, and it’s great for eating on a cold day.

Conclusion

Sweet and sour chicken is a great meal, and it tastes delicious, but what do you serve with it? The answer: any of the eight best side dishes listed above.

They’re all great for pairing with sweet and sour chicken because they taste amazing and go well together.

No matter what, you’re going to have a delicious meal.

So give one of these dishes a try today and enjoy.

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