Dinner • Lunch
Sweet Chilli Popcorn Chicken Meal Prep
Sticky sweet chilli chicken with garlic, ginger and lime, served over rice with sesame and green onions. Four portions, and plenty of flavor to look forward to.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
I made this sweet chilli chicken and it was delicious. Sticky sweet heat, garlic, ginger and a squeeze of lime, with fluffy rice underneath to catch all that sauce? This is a lunch worth looking forward to.
It makes four portions, so dinner tonight can double as a head start on the week. Big flavor, a few lunches sorted, and something delicious ready for tomorrow.
Simple Ingredients
The chicken gets a light coating of egg and cornflour before cooking. If you’re shopping in the US, cornflour here means cornstarch. For the glaze, use Mingle Sweet Chilli Sauce or a similar sweet chilli sauce with a comparable chilli-and-garlic flavor, plus light soy sauce, garlic, ginger, lime and rice vinegar.
Weigh the sticky rice before cooking. It’s an easy detail to miss, and the amount in the recipe is for the whole four-portion batch.
Best Ways to Enjoy It
Spoon the glazed chicken over the rice and finish with sesame seeds and green onions. Cucumber with a little soy sauce is a fresh, crunchy side if you want one. Don’t leave the extra glaze behind in the pan.
A Few Helpful Tips
- Give the chicken room in the air fryer or on the baking tray. Cook in batches if needed so the pieces sit in a single layer.
- Simmer the glaze gently until it lightly coats a spoon, then toss in the cooked chicken. Watch the sauce rather than the clock.
- No Mingle? A comparable sweet chilli sauce works as a swap. Choose a similar sweetness and heat level; the brand you use can change the macros.
- Sweeteners vary in strength. Check yours before adding it to the rice, especially if it is concentrated.
Tools That Make This Easier
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Containers that make meal prep easier
The Rubbermaid Brilliance four-pack is a useful match for this four-portion batch. You can divide the chicken and rice between equal-sized containers, stack them in the fridge, and take lunch with you under a secure, leak-resistant lid. This is the roomy 4.7-US-cup (about 1.1 L) size, handy if you like adding cucumber or other sides.
A tray for the oven option
The Nordic Ware half-sheet pans give the chicken space to spread out, with a rim that makes turning the pieces easier. The two-pack is useful for regular batch cooking. If you’re keeping things budget-friendly, a similar rimmed tray from your cupboard works for the oven method too.
Food Safety
Wash utensils and surfaces that touched raw chicken before using them for serving. See the USDA temperature guide and leftover storage guidance.
More Recipes to Try
For another meal idea, try crispy chicken tacos or Korean BBQ chicken and sticky rice.
Sweet Chilli Popcorn Chicken Meal Prep
Active Time
20–25 mins
Total Time
35–45 mins
Servings
4
Approximate times. Rice cooks while the chicken and glaze are prepared. Allow extra time for additional air-fryer batches.
Estimated nutrition per serving (one-quarter of the batch). Not independently recalculated. Brands, optional toppings and extra cornstarch affect the estimate.
Calories
496
Protein
50g
Carbs
64g
Fat
3g
Allergens: Contains egg and soy; sesame when garnished with sesame seeds. Check soy sauce and seasoning labels for wheat and other allergens.
Ingredients
Both systems are shown; the toggle changes their order. US equivalents are approximate. Metric amounts are the recipe reference. Ounces (oz) measure weight; fl oz measures volume. Use level US measuring spoons.
- Chicken: 1.76 lb (800 g) diced chicken breast Chicken: 800 g (1.76 lb) diced chicken breast
- Chicken: 1 US tbsp (15 mL) soy sauce Chicken: 15 mL (1 US tbsp) soy sauce
- Chicken: 1 egg Chicken: 1 egg
- Chicken: 1.4 oz (40 g) cornflour (cornstarch), plus an optional extra 0.35 oz (10 g) if the coating is clumpy Chicken: 40 g (1.4 oz) cornflour (cornstarch), plus an optional extra 10 g (0.35 oz) if the coating is clumpy
- Chicken: Mingle Use Me on Everything seasoning or salt and pepper, to taste Chicken: Mingle Use Me on Everything seasoning or salt and pepper, to taste
- Glaze: about 6 US tbsp (90 mL) Mingle Sweet Chilli Sauce or a similar sweet chilli sauce Glaze: 90 mL (about 6 US tbsp) Mingle Sweet Chilli Sauce or a similar sweet chilli sauce
- Glaze: about ¼ US cup (60 mL) light soy sauce Glaze: 60 mL (about ¼ US cup) light soy sauce
- Glaze: about ⅓ US cup (80 mL) water Glaze: 80 mL (about ⅓ US cup) water
- Glaze: 1 US tsp (5 mL) minced garlic Glaze: 5 mL (1 US tsp) minced garlic
- Glaze: 1 US tsp (5 mL) minced ginger Glaze: 5 mL (1 US tsp) minced ginger
- Glaze: 1 US tbsp (15 mL) rice vinegar Glaze: 15 mL (1 US tbsp) rice vinegar
- Glaze: juice of ½ lime Glaze: juice of ½ lime
- Rice: 7.1 oz (200 g) DRY sticky rice Rice: 200 g (7.1 oz) DRY sticky rice
- Rice: 3 US tbsp (45 mL) rice vinegar Rice: 45 mL (3 US tbsp) rice vinegar
- Rice: 1 US tbsp (15 mL) sweetener of your choice; sweetness varies by product Rice: 15 mL (1 US tbsp) sweetener of your choice; sweetness varies by product
- Rice: salt to taste Rice: salt to taste
- Sesame seeds and green onions, optional Sesame seeds and green onions, optional
- Cucumber with soy sauce, optional, to serve Cucumber with soy sauce, optional, to serve
Instructions
- Cook the 7.1 oz (200 g) dry sticky rice using the water ratio and method on its package. Stir in the rice vinegar, sweetener and salt. Cook the 200 g (7.1 oz) dry sticky rice using the water ratio and method on its package. Stir in the rice vinegar, sweetener and salt.
- Mix the diced chicken with the soy sauce, egg and seasoning to taste. Add the cornflour and toss until the pieces are coated. Add the optional extra 0.35 oz (10 g) cornflour if the coating is clumpy. Do not taste the raw chicken mixture. Mix the diced chicken with the soy sauce, egg and seasoning to taste. Add the cornflour and toss until the pieces are coated. Add the optional extra 10 g (0.35 oz) cornflour if the coating is clumpy. Do not taste the raw chicken mixture.
- Arrange the chicken in a single layer, working in batches if needed. Air-fry at about 400°F / 200°C for 10–12 minutes OR oven-bake at about 425°F / 220°C for 15–18 minutes, flipping halfway. Check the thickest pieces reach 165°F / 74°C internally; continue cooking if needed. Arrange the chicken in a single layer, working in batches if needed. Air-fry at 200°C / about 400°F for 10–12 minutes OR oven-bake at 220°C / about 425°F for 15–18 minutes, flipping halfway. Check the thickest pieces reach 74°C / 165°F internally; continue cooking if needed.
- Whisk all the glaze ingredients together in a wide pan. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat, stirring, until the sauce lightly coats a spoon. Add the cooked chicken and toss until coated. Whisk all the glaze ingredients together in a wide pan. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat, stirring, until the sauce lightly coats a spoon. Add the cooked chicken and toss until coated.
- Divide the rice and glazed chicken into four portions. Finish with sesame seeds and green onions; add the optional cucumber with soy sauce if desired. Divide the rice and glazed chicken into four portions. Finish with sesame seeds and green onions; add the optional cucumber with soy sauce if desired.
Variations
- Use a similar chilli-and-garlic sweet chilli sauce with a comparable sweetness and heat. Different sauces and sweeteners change flavor and nutrition.
- Mingle Use Me on Everything or salt and pepper both work for seasoning the chicken to taste.
Storage
- Refrigerate promptly in shallow covered containers at 40°F / 4°C or below. Use refrigerated leftovers within 3–4 days; refrigerate within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F / 32°C.
- Reheat leftovers to 165°F / 74°C.
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