Easy Homestyle Bourbon Chicken
Bourbon Chicken is a popular dish commonly found at Cajun and sometimes Chinese restaurants. The name originated from Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana and from the bourbon whiskey ingredient. The recipe usually includes soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, and bourbon or other whiskey in the base.
I recall years back when Bourbon Chicken just came out and could be found at most mall food courts in America and my friends and siblings and I couldn’t get enough of it. So, I set out to re-create the closest home made version to this popular recipe. After trying a few different attempts, this is what I decided tastes best.
I use boneless chicken thighs cut in small pieces, a mixture of soy sauce, brown sugar, minced ginger, minced garlic, apple juice, bourbon & apple cider vinegar.
Ingredients
- Boneless Thighs – Breasts can be substituted
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Apple Cider Vinegar
- Apple Juice
- Bourbon – or other whiskey
- Brown Sugar
- Oyster Sauce
- Dark Soy Sauce
- Red Pepper Flakes – Optional
- Cornstarch – Diluted to thicken
- Oil
How to Prepare Homemade Bourbon Chicken
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- Cut chicken into small pieces.
- Season with all ingredients except cornstarch and oil.
- Cover in a seasoning bowl and marinade for at least 2 hours or overnight.
- Heat a large skillet, add oil when hot, add chicken and stir fry for a few minutes until cooked.
- Dilute cornstarch and add while stirring for about 2 minutes until slightly thickens.
- Simmer a few more minutes and remove from heat to serve.
This is also one of my quick & easy weeknight dishes. Give it a try and leave a comment below.

Easy Homemade Bourbon Chicken
Ingredients
- 12 Boneless Chicken Thighs or 6 boneless breasts
- 2 cloves Garlic minced
- 1/2 tsp. Ginger minced
- 2 Tbsp. Bourbon or other whiskey
- 1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp. Apple Juice
- 1/2 cup Brown Sugar
- 2 Tbsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 Tbsp. Oyster Sauce
- 2 Tbsp. Dark or Mushroom Soy Sauce
- optional pinch Red Pepper Flakes or pepper of choice
- 1 Tbsp. Cornstarch diluted in 2 Tbsp. water
- 1 Tbsp. Oil
Instructions
-
Wash, Clean and cut up chicken into small pieces. Drain well. Place in a medium seasoning bowl.
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Mince garlic & ginger, add it to chicken along with all ingredients up to soy sauce and optional pepper. Cover and marinate at least 2 hours or longer.
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Heat a large skillet on Medium-high heat, add oil and heat 1-2 minutes until hot.
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Add chicken and keep stirring for a few minutes until no longer pink.
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When sauce is boiling, ditute cornstarch & add while stirring for a few minutes until slightly thickened.
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Turn to medium-low and simmer another 5 minutes. Turn off heat & serve.
Recipe Notes
Serves well with white rice, and/or vegetables of choice.