Sheet pan bang bang chicken with crispy rice is an easy one-pan dinner made with juicy chicken thighs, crunchy roasted rice, and a creamy sweet-spicy bang bang sauce. It’s a flavorful weeknight meal that comes together on a single sheet pan.
Make extra bang bang sauce. I doubled it the second time because everyone wanted more to drizzle over the crispy rice and chicken. It’s that good.”
- Jo Anna L.
from my actual life
(feel free to skip to the bang bang chicken)
Bang bang chicken is one of my favorite things I have made in the last month. If I’m being honest, if it’s made on one sheet pan (which this is) and has bang bang sauce, it’s automatically going to rank pretty high for me.
Obviously the star of the recipe is the bang bang sauce (the title says so). It’s creamy, sweet and just the right amount of spicy all at once. But for me, my favorite part is the rice. It stays fluffy, but the parts touching the sheet pan clump together and get lightly crisp around the edges instead of everything just getting scooped onto one big bland pile of white rice.
Go ahead and double the sauce. I’ve never once made enough.
Bailey
P.S. If you like dinners that happen on a sheet pan, my sheet pan gnocchi with corn and burst tomatoes is another really good option.
worth knowing
meal prep: This one is a great contender for make-ahead lunches for the week. I follow the recipe as written and then instead of serving, divide it into containers. I add a condiment container (or 2) to each one filled with bang bang sauce. I don’t add it straight on top so that it is nice and cool even after everything else gets warmed up in the microwave.
chicken breasts work too: I prefer thighs here (and pretty much always). I know chicken thighs get a bad rap. People just don’t seem to like them or think working with them is gross. But, and hear me out, they taste better and they are much harder to dry out. That said, if you are a die-hard chicken breast fan, of course you can use them.
missing veggies: There is no vegetable in this one. I half-heartedly tried adding some broccoli, but the timing wasn’t right and to be honest, my sheet pan was already pretty full. If you want some green, roasting broccoli separately would be a delicious addition, or grab a bagged salad kit and move on.
skip the parchment: I know it’s super tempting to add parchment paper for an easier cleanup, but the rice needs to be directly against the hot metal of your sheet pan so we get those lightly crusted crispy bits.
use a scale for the sauce: If you have a kitchen scale, set the bowl right on it and weigh the sauce ingredients straight in. You’ll dirty way fewer measuring cups.
frozen rice cooks faster: Store-bought frozen rice tends to crisp up faster than freshly cooked and chilled rice. Start checking it a little early so it doesn’t go past lightly crisp into chewy and over-browned.
instructions
- To start out, we are going to roast some bite-size pieces of chicken thighs on a hot sheet pan until each one is cooked through and has golden edges. Then, you will transfer the chicken to a plate and wrap it tightly in foil, but don’t clean the pan. You want all those browned bits left behind.
- To your “dirty” sheet pan, add the cold rice with a little oil, soy sauce and garlic powder. Cold rice isn’t optional. If you’re making it fresh, just get it into the refrigerator before you start everything else. It needs to be cold by the time it hits the pan.
- While the rice is crisping up in the oven, you are going to make a ridiculously quick bang bang sauce. Stir together mayo, chili sauce, sriracha and rice vinegar. Set it aside and enjoy the feeling of accomplishment that comes with knowing you didn’t use store-bought.
- Once that rice is nice and crisped up, add the chicken back onto the sheet pan, give the whole thing a big ol’ drizzle of bang bang sauce. Sprinkle on some green onions (or don’t) and serve it straight off the pan.
Storage
refrigerate: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Keep the bang bang sauce separate so it stays cool and creamy.
reheat: Microwave the chicken and rice until hot, then add the cold bang bang sauce.
ingredients + substitutions
chicken: Boneless, skinless chicken breasts can be used. They may cook a little faster, so keep an eye on them.
olive oil: Any neutral oil is fine.
cornstarch: Arrowroot starch can be used as a 1:1 swap.
garlic powder: Onion powder can be used, but it will change the flavor. Don’t use fresh garlic, it can burn at this temperature and ruin the recipe.
paprika: Smoked paprika works too.
cooked white or jasmine rice: As long as the rice is fully cooked and cooled, you can use what you have on hand.
soy sauce: Use gluten-free tamari in place of soy sauce, and check the labels on your sweet chili sauce and sriracha.
green onions: Chives or thinly sliced shallots. You can also omit.
mayonnaise: Plain Greek yogurt can be subbed, but we have to be honest with ourselves … you are going to notice that you didn’t use mayonnaise.
sweet chili sauce: I don’t have a recommended sub here.
sriracha: Any chili garlic sauce or hot sauce works. Use the lower end of the amount if you prefer it milder.
rice vinegar: Lime juice can be swapped.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
- Viral Sheet Pan Lasagna (Easy Layerless Recipe)
- Sheet Pan Gnocchi with Sausage, Corn and Burst Tomatoes
- Healthy Orange Chicken and Rice Bowls (Easy Recipe)
- Healthy Air Fryer Egg Rolls (with Oven Directions Too!)
- Quick Chicken Fried Cauliflower Rice (Easy Recipe)
- 20-Minute Bourbon Honey Chicken (Easy Recipe)
- Shrimp Egg Roll In A Bowl (Easy 20 Minute Recipe)
- Healthy Chicken Pad Thai (Easy Recipe)
Recipe
Easy Sheet Pan Bang Bang Chicken with Crispy Rice
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
Sheet Pan Bang Bang Chicken with Crispy Rice is a quick weeknight dinner made with golden brown chicken thighs, crispy white rice, and a creamy, slightly spicy sauce made from Thai sweet chili sauce, olive oil, and the perfect amount of sriracha.
Ingredients
Chicken
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1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
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1½ tablespoons olive oil
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1 tablespoon cornstarch
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1 teaspoon garlic powder
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1 teaspoon paprika
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¾ teaspoon salt
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¼ teaspoon black pepper
Crispy Rice
3 cups (450g) cooked jasmine or white rice, completely cold
-
1½ tablespoons olive oil
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½ teaspoon salt
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½ teaspoon garlic powder
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1 tablespoon soy sauce
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3 to 4 green onions, thinly sliced
Bang Bang Sauce
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½ cup (120g) mayonnaise
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¼ cup (60g) sweet chili sauce
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1 to 2 tablespoons sriracha
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1 teaspoon rice vinegar
Instructions
- prepare the rice: If your rice is warm, refrigerate it before starting the recipe. Freshly cooked rice and microwaved frozen rice both work; it just needs to be cold before it goes onto the sheet pan.
- heat the pan: Put a large rimmed sheet pan in the oven and heat the oven to 425°F. The pan needs to be hot before anything goes on it.
- coat the chicken: In a large bowl, toss the chicken thighs (1½ pounds) with olive oil (1½ tablespoons), cornstarch (1 tablespoon), garlic powder (1 teaspoon), paprika (1 teaspoon), salt (¾ teaspoon), and black pepper (¼ teaspoon) until evenly coated.
- roast the chicken: Carefully pull the hot pan from the oven and spread the chicken in a single layer. Roast until cooked through and browned around the edges, flipping once halfway. My roughly ¾-inch pieces took about 16 minutes; larger pieces will take longer. The chicken is done when it reaches 165°F. Immediately transfer to a plate and wrap tightly in two layers of foil to keep warm. Do not clean the sheet pan.
- crisp the rice: Add the cold rice (3 cups) directly to the hot, dirty sheet pan along with olive oil (1½ tablespoons), salt (½ teaspoon), garlic powder (½ teaspoon), and soy sauce (1 tablespoon). Toss on the pan and spread into an even layer. Bake 20 to 25 minutes, stirring once about halfway through. The rice will start to clump together and develop a light crust where it touches the pan. You want fluffy rice with crisp, crusty bits, not chewy rice that is deeply browned all over.
- make the bang bang sauce: While the rice cooks, whisk together the mayonnaise (½ cup), sweet chili sauce (¼ cup), sriracha (1 to 2 tablespoons), and rice vinegar (1 teaspoon) until smooth.
- finish the pan: Remove the rice from the oven and immediately stir in the sliced green onions (3 to 4). Add the warm chicken back to the sheet pan and drizzle generously with the bang bang sauce. Serve with the remaining sauce alongside.
Notes
Nutrition information: This is an estimate and does not include bang bang sauce. Values may vary based on specific ingredients and brands used.
Cold Rice Matters: Use rice that is fully chilled. Cold, dry grains crisp instead of steaming, which is what gives you real texture on the pan.
Why No Parchment: Cooking directly on the sheet pan allows the rice to make full contact with the metal, which is how it gets deeply golden and crisp. Parchment will block that.
Sauce Quantity: The recipe is written for a reasonable amount, but most people want more. It keeps well in the fridge and is great on leftovers.
Cut Size: Cutting the chicken into roughly ¾-inch pieces helps it cook quickly and evenly without drying out.
Make Ahead: The sauce can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored covered in the refrigerator.
Reheating: Reheat rice and chicken in a hot skillet or oven to re-crisp slightly, then add the sauce after heating. You can also use the microwave but you will lose some texture.
Gluten-Free: Use tamari instead of soy sauce to keep the recipe gluten-free.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Asian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ⅙th of pan
- Calories: 233
- Sugar: 0.3 g
- Sodium: 367.2 mg
- Fat: 8.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 28 g
- Protein: 10 g
- Cholesterol: 35 mg
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