This Sweet Fire Chicken is a perfect Panda Express copycat with chicken, red pepper, onion and pineapple in a spicy sweet chili sauce.

This dish is perfect for recreating your favorite takeout meal at home. And, it's quick, easy, and packed with bold, delicious flavors!
Why you'll love this recipe
- The best copycat: This Panda Express sweet fire chicken copycat recipe tastes just like the original, but you can make it yourself at home.
- Sweet and spicy: You'll get an amazing blend of sweet and spicy flavors, with sweetness from the pineapple and sweet chili sauce, and a bit of heat from the chili flakes.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Boneless chicken breasts – you can use boneless skinless chicken thighs instead.
- All-purpose flour – a cornstarch mixture will work, although you may not get as thick of a coating.
- Eggs – buttermilk can be used too (if you don't have any on hand, mix 1 tbsp lemon juice with 1 cup of milk).
- Cooking oil – I use canola oil, but you can substitute it with any neutral flavour of cooking oil.
- Yellow onion – feel free to use white or red onion in place of the yellow onion.
- Red bell pepper – feel free to use any type of bell pepper in this dish.
- Pineapple chunks – fresh pineapple gives the dish the best flavour, but you can use canned pineapple chunks if you want to.
- Sweet chili sauce – use your favourite store-bought sauce or make your own.
- Chili flakes – adjust based on your spice tolerance.
- Green onions – leave these out if you’re not a fan of green onions.
- White rice – brown would also be good.

How to make Panda Express sweet fire chicken

Step 1: Coat the chicken.
Coat the chicken in the egg mixture, then toss in flour.
Step 2: Cook the chicken.
Heat oil, then add the chicken pieces.

Step 3: Add the veggies.
Add in the red peppers and onions.
Step 4: Add pineapple and sauce.
Stir in pineapple chunks, sweet chili sauce and chili flakes. Cook until the sauce thickens then serve and enjoy!

Recipe Variations & Tips
Here are some of my top tips and tricks for making this delicious copycat recipe:
- Adjust the spice level: You can add more or less chili flakes based on your spice tolerance. For a less spicy dish, leave them out altogether.
- Add more veggies: Different colour bell peppers, green beans, snow peas, bok choy and broccoli florets would all be delicious in this stir fry.
- Evenly coat the chicken: To ensure you get it as crispy as possible, make sure you're evenly coating the chicken in the flour mixture.
- Make your own sauce: I normally use a store-bought sweet chili sauce, but if you don't have any on hand, you can make your own using rice vinegar, sugar, water, sambal oelek and cornstarch.
Frequently asked questions
What does sweet fire chicken taste like?
Sweet fire chicken tastes a little bit sweet and a little bit spicy. You’ll get the sweetness from the pineapple, and the spice from the sweet chili sauce and red chili flakes. It’s the perfect combo!
How spicy is it?
Thanks to the sweet pineapple and sweet chili sauce, the flavour is not terribly spicy. Red chili flakes are the main source of spicy heat in this dish and because the amount of chili flakes is easy to adjust, you can make it as spicy or mild as you want to.
Can you bake the chicken instead?
I personally haven't tried baking the chicken, and it wouldn't get as crispy as if you pan fried it. Plus, you'll still need to use the skillet to fry up the veggies and make the sauce. If you really want to, you can try baking the chicken on a parchment-lined sheet pan for 10-15 mins at 375°F.

What to serve with panda express sweet fire chicken
- Rice (I like white but any variety works)
- Egg rolls
- Cauliflower rice for a low-carb option
- Crispy green beans
- Asparagus
Storing and reheating
Storing: Store leftovers in airtight containers or meal prep bowls in the fridge for up to 5 days. For the freshest results, keep the chicken separate from the vegetables and sauce.
Reheating: The best way to reheat is in a skillet over medium heat to maintain the chicken’s texture. If using the microwave, sprinkle a bit of water over the chicken to prevent it from drying out, then heat in 30-second intervals until warmed through.
Freezing: You can freeze sweet fire chicken for up to 3 months. Let it defrost in the fridge overnight then reheat as normal. Serve with fresh rice and dig in.

Meal prep tools for this recipe
- Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on turning this meal into your weekly lunches.
- I get all my free-range chicken from Butcher Box, conveniently delivered to me frozen.
- You can order sweet chili sauce online.

Pnada Express Sweet Fire Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breasts, diced
- 1 cup flour
- 2 eggs
- salt & pepper, to taste
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 1/2 cup pineapple chunks
- 1/2 cup sweet chili sauce
- 1 pinch chili flakes
- 4 green onions, sliced
Rice
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 cup white rice
- 1 tsp butter
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
- Cook rice in a rice cooker or on the stovetop according to package directions.
- Add eggs and flour to two separate bowls. Coat chicken in egg mixture, then toss in flour.
- Heat canola oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Add coated chicken pieces to skillet once oil is hot, then season with salt and pepper. Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring often, until browned.
- Add onions and red pepper, sauteeing another 2-3 minutes until veggies are tender. Stir in pineapple chunks, sweet chili sauce and chili flakes, tossing mixture until well coated and cook for 1-2 minutes until sauce thickens.
- Serve chicken over rice and garnish with green onions. Enjoy!
Comments & Reviews
Miyah says
Hi Taylor! I’m so thankful that I’ve found this recipe, especially for a last-minute dinner meal idea for my family. Not only was it easy and simple to follow, but it was also delicious!! I used to try and make this at home but the recipe didn’t quite work out well until I came across this one! However, when it came to making this recipe, I had to sub the flour for cornstarch (due to not having any) and it still came out tasty. Thank you so much again for having this recipe available. My family and I enjoyed it and I will hopefully make this again either for myself or my family again 🙂 I hope you have a great day!
Taylor Stinson says
So happy you enjoyed Miyah, thank you so much for the kind words 🙂