Crispy Baked Chicken Bites with Asian-inspired Sauce (Gluten-Free)

I love Chinese food so much, but being gluten-free and living in Israel, there are essentially zero options for crispy, tasty options here. Yes, I could buy some batter or use a recipe from Google, slathered in flour and deep-fried on the stove, but I don't deep fry food. 

So this year, I spent some time with my BFF ChatGPT to figure out the best cornstarch-based recipe because I know that cornstarch creates the crispiest, most golden-brown crust in the oven. So after several attempts, here she is ... the ultimate crispy baked chicken bites. Toss them in your own favorite sauce or use mine! 

If you try the recipe, please let me know what you think. 

Crispy Baked Chicken Bites with Asian-inspired Sauce (Gluten-Free)

Serves: 5-6

Chicken ingredients
1.5-2 lb boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces (you can use breasts too)
1 tbsp soy sauce
½ cup cornstarch
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
½ tsp garlic powder
Olive oil spray

Sauce ingredients
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
3 tbsp ketchup
2 tbsp brown sugar
4 tbsp soy sauce 

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 425°F/220°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment and lightly spray it with olive oil. 
2. Pat the chicken pieces as dry as you can. 
3. Put the chicken pieces in a bowl and toss with the soy sauce. 
4. Add cornstarch, salt, pepper, and garlic powder, and toss to coat until every piece looks dry and chalky. 
5. Spread chicken in a single layer on the baking sheet and then spray lightly with oil. 
6. Bake 15 minutes. 
7. Flip pieces and bake another 15 minutes until crisp and golden. 
8. In the last 5 minutes of baking, add the sauce ingredients to a pan, and bring to a boil for about a minute until it’s thick. 
9. Remove the chicken from the oven and toss the chicken in the sauce.
10. Serve with rice and broccoli.