Gluten Free Sweet and Sour Chicken

This gluten-free sweet and sour chicken (baked sheet pan recipe) has an irresistible flavor with crispy skin and a juicy and tender texture. This sheet pan sweet and sour chicken dinner recipe baked in the oven is simple, healthy, full of flavor, and ready in no time.

Dinner recipe can not get any easier than this baked sheet pan sweet-and-sour chicken in lime orange marinara. Serve it with my vegetarian broccoli cheddar soup for a perfect quick meal for busy days, or go for my gluten-free potato soup if you need to stick to GF!

Although my creamy walnut chicken recipe is my family’s number one choice, this baked sweet-and-sour chicken recipe marinated in lime and orange is a gold standard in my family, and everyone loves it. With only one sheet pan to clean, I spend even less time in the kitchen and more time with my family.

I will marinate the sweet and sour chicken the night before and let it sit in the fridge to build a more in-depth lime and orange flavor. And next day, I heat the oven and bake it along with any vegetables I have on hand, especially broccoli and carrots.

Citrus fruits are in full swing in the winter season. And nothing is more inviting than a sweet and sour chicken baking in a hot oven in this cold winter season. The aroma fills the entire house, and everyone is eager to take a bite as soon as it is ready.

The beauty of simple recipes is that you can make them in 30 minutes or less and serve them fresh. So the food comes to tables hot, sizzling, and mesmerizing all senses. The only problem is the wait for food to get cool enough to enjoy while kids watch it impatiently.

How to tenderize the chicken

A great way to tenderize the chicken is by using lime and or orange juice. The acidity of lime and orange juice penetrates into chicken meat, breaks down the protein bind, and makes it tender.

However, I would not recommend freezing the marinated orange and lime chicken. Because lime and orange juice oxidize over time, making the chicken taste bitter. Besides that, when chicken is marinated in it for too long, the texture of the meat becomes rubbery and tough.

Ingredients

• Chicken. A whole chicken is cut into eight pieces. Fresh or well thawed. You may cut the chicken into smaller pieces and shorten the cooking time.
• One medium-sized orange
• Limes.
• Garlic and onion powder.
• Oil. I use avocado oil.
• Salt and pepper to taste

How to make gluten free sweet and sour chicken

Follow along with my easy instructions to see how to make gluten free sweet and sour chicken at home.

Preheat the oven to 425 °F.

Zest the lime and orange.

Then microwave lime and orange for 30 seconds. This will soften them and help to squeeze the liquid out easily.

Add garlic and onion powder to the liquid.

Mix the ingredients and pour them over the chicken. Make sure the marinara is distributed all over the chicken. For the best result, use your hand to marinate.

Next, add salt and pepper as needed to all the chicken pieces.

Optional. Let the chicken marinate in the fridge overnight to build more flavor and absorb flavor better, or at least 15 minutes before baking it.

Next, marinate the chicken with oil right before baking it. Oil helps with the chicken browning process.

Lay the chicken pieces on a cast-iron sheet pan or another wide sheet pan. Leave some room between chicken pieces. Leaving room between chicken pieces helps to crispen up the chicken faster.

Bake them for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown on top. ENJOY!

Notes

• If you only use chicken breasts, thighs, or legs, make sure to adjust for cooking time. Chicken breast tends to cook faster.
• Also, I like to cook chicken with bone. It adds more flavor to the dish. But, if you have boneless chicken meat in hand, adjust for a cooking time, as they cook much faster.
• The smaller the chicken cuts are, the faster the cooking process.
• The only note to remember is no matter what type of chicken meat you use, make sure to cook it at a higher temperature of 425 °F. This will result in a juicy and tender chicken.
• Make sure not to overcook the chicken. Otherwise, it becomes tough and rubbery.
• I used a 5.5 x 10.5-inch cast-iron sheet pan.

Tips

• This recipe works best with either fresh or well-thawed frozen chicken.
• Zest the lime and orange skin and add to the marinara. Avoid the white part of the skin since it has a bitter taste.
• Use freshly squeezed lime and orange juice to optimize the flavor.
• Use bone-in chicken cuts to maximize the flavor.
• Bake the chicken with the skin on. It helps to keep the meat moist and tender. Remove the skin before serving if you like!
• I used onion and garlic powder. Use freshly made, well-grated onion and garlic if you have extra time.
• Coat the chicken well with the marinara.
• Make this marinated chicken the night before and leave it in the fridge. This will enhance the lime and orange flavor. And the salt helps to keep the meat juicy and tender.

More tips

• Let the chicken sit in marinara for at least 15 minutes before baking it in a preheated oven.
• Add oil right before cooking. Adding oil, in the beginning, makes a barrier for the chicken to absorb the flavor of the ingredients.
• Adding oil helps to kickstart the chicken browning process.
• If desired, add some honey to sweeten the chicken and mix it well.
• Cut the cooking time in half by cutting the chicken into smaller pieces.
• Preferably, bake it on a cast-iron sheet pan. It has more space and helps crisp up the chicken in the bottom and cook faster.
• Serve it hot from the oven with your favorite side dishes such as sauté vegetables and quince salad. I served it with my leftover Vegetarian broccoli cheddar soup and sauerkraut.
• Substitute chicken with fresh or thawed fish fillet or bone-in beef cuts and adjust the cooking time.

Substitutes

• Substitute chicken with fresh or thawed fish fillet or bone-in beef cut and adjust for cooking time.
• Substitute lime orange juice with vinegar and honey.

Equipment

I used a 15.5 x 10.5 inch cast iron sheet pan. Everything tastes extra delicious when cooked in cast iron cookware.

Storage and reheat

Store the leftover sweet and sour chicken in an airtight container for 3 days and reheat them in the oven or microwave.

How to serve it

Serve sweet and sour chicken hot out of the oven with your favorite side dishes such as sautéed vegetables and quinoa salad. I served it with my leftover vegetarian broccoli cheddar soup and sauerkraut.

Variations in cooking

This recipe is great for grilling chicken during warm weather in the spring and summer. Also, you can quickly fry it on a stovetop and let it cook slowly. Or you can make a stew or soup with it, adding it to the pot and cooking it alongside some carrots and potatoes. Also, this recipe comes out great in a slow cooker or an instant pot.

What to do with leftover chicken

I make a taco sandwich with leftover sweet and sour chicken using my incredibly easy Easy sourdough discard naans made with sourdough discard. I also like to use the leftover chicken in vegetable soup or toss it into a quick salad.

What did you substitute? How did your family and kids like it? Let me know in the comment below your favorite combination. I’d love to hear from you!

Find more simple, delicious, nutritious chicken recipes:

• Creamy walnut chicken recipe (Lavangi)

• Best chicken kebabs in the oven

If you loved this recipe, I would appreciate it if you would come back, comment, and rate it five stars! Please share this recipe on Pinterest! Thank you.