Easy Sweet and Sour Vegetable Stir Fry is ready in 30 minutes! A quick, healthy meal with fresh veggies and a tasty sauce—great for busy weeknights.

I always find myself using the ingredients I have in my cupboard, especially before heading out for food shopping. I aim to utilise all the food I have to minimise food waste. It's amazing how many interesting recipes come out of this process.
I especially enjoy quick and easy recipes that can be paired differently each time. This chicken stew pairs wonderfully with steamed rice, Turkish bulgur, pasta, mashed or baked potatoes, a slice of freshly baked bread, or on its own with a piece of homemade tortilla.
This veggie dish is ideal for a fast meal on busy days. Whether served as a main course or a snack, it's bound to leave everyone wanting more. You should also try our Lemon Chicken, Easy 15-minute Udon Noodles, Turkey Mince Noodles, or Gnocchi made easy with Pesto and Zucchini for a quick, delicious lunch or dinner.
Need easy meal ideas? Try creamy spinach pepper chicken or a quick potato and tuna dish. Make a healthy oil-free mayo for salads or sandwiches. For breakfast, cook a veggie-packed cabbage frittata or a simple potato frittata. For something sweet, bake a yoghurt cake or an apple-filled cake. Impress guests with baked pears and gorgonzola or light turkey wontons. For a filling meal, turkey mince noodles are a great choice. Check out these recipes for simple and tasty ideas!
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💗 Why This Recipe Works
- Perfect for busy nights and pairs with any side dish.
- Homemade for a healthier option that kids love.
- Low-calorie and great for meal prepping—make ahead, store, and reheat as needed.
💭 Expert Tips
- Prep Ingredients Ahead: Have all your vegetables chopped and sauce mixed before you start cooking. Stir-fry cooking is fast, so being prepared ensures everything cooks evenly and perfectly.
- High Heat Cooking: Use high heat for quick cooking to retain the vegetables' vibrant colour and crisp texture. A hot wok or large skillet best achieves that classic stir-fry finish.
- Balance the Sauce: Taste and adjust the sweet and sour sauce to your preference before adding it to the vegetables. You can tweak the sweetness with more sugar or the tanginess with more vinegar or citrus juice.
What is Sweet and Sour Sauce?
Sweet and sour sauce is a tangy, sweet sauce made by mixing sugar and vinegar or lemon juice. It often includes ketchup or soy sauce and sometimes other ingredients like pineapple juice or hoisin sauce. This sauce is commonly used in Chinese dishes to add a zesty and balanced flavor. It pairs well with stir-fried veggies, meat, or tofu.
🥘 Ingredients
For this sweet-and-sour vegetable stir-fry, we need:
- For the vegetables, use onion, red and orange bell peppers, carrots, green beans, and garlic. Add cooked chickpeas for protein, and season with salt, pepper, and paprika. Use olive oil for cooking.
- Chinese Sweet & Sour Sauce
- From concentrate: Mix with hot water as directed on the package.
- Make it from scratch using these ingredients: garlic, ginger, tomato ketchup, malt vinegar, brown sugar and tinned pineapple in juice. Recipe below.
Pro Tip: To save time, mix the sweet and sour sauce ingredients in advance. Simply cover and refrigerate it the day before or in the morning, and it will be ready to use.
♻️ Substitutions
- Olive Oil: Can be replaced with any cooking oil, like vegetable oil or canola oil.
- Onion: Shallots or leeks can be used as alternatives for a similar taste.
- Red and Orange Bell Peppers: Yellow or green bell peppers, or even other vegetables like zucchini or eggplant, can be substituted.
- Carrots: Other root vegetables like parsnips or turnips can be used, or you can try thinly sliced sweet potatoes for a sweeter twist.
- Cooked Chickpeas: Cannellini beans, black beans, or lentils can be used as substitutes for chickpeas.
- Green Beans: Snow peas or snap peas can provide a similar crisp texture.
- Garlic: Garlic powder or garlic paste can be used as a substitute for fresh garlic cloves.
- Salt and Pepper: These can be adjusted to taste, and any other preferred seasoning can be used as well.
- Paprika: Smoked paprika, chilli powder, or cayenne pepper can provide a similar smoky flavour.
- Chinese Sweet & Sour Concentrate: If unavailable, you can make a homemade sweet and sour sauce using ingredients like ketchup, vinegar, sugar, and soy sauce.
🥗 Serving suggestions
Sweet and sour vegetable stir fry is a versatile dish that pairs well with a variety of serving options. Here are some popular choices:
- Serve the sweet and sour vegetable stir fry over steamed white rice or brown rice or my Lebanese Rice and Broken Vermicelli.
- Noodles: Serve the stir fry with cooked noodles such as rice noodles, udon noodles, or chow mein noodles.
- Quinoa: For a healthier alternative to rice or noodles, serve the stir fry with cooked quinoa. Quinoa adds a nutty taste and a satisfying texture to the dish.
- Lettuce Wraps: Serve the sweet and sour vegetables in lettuce cups. Simply spoon the stir fry into large lettuce leaves, such as iceberg or butter lettuce, and roll them up like wraps.
- Tofu or Tempeh: Add a protein component to your meal by including tofu or tempeh in the stir-fry. You can marinate and stir-fry them along with the vegetables or serve them on the side.
- Garnishes: Sprinkle some chopped green onions, cilantro, or sesame seeds over the sweet and sour vegetable stir fry.
- Side dishes: Consider serving the stir-fry with additional side dishes like steamed or stir-fried bok choy, broccoli, or snap peas.
❓FAQs
Enjoy this easy version of a Chinese takeaway classic as a dipping sauce or mix it with meat and vegetables for a tangy and flavourful dish.
Ingredients
200 ml pineapple juice
100 g light brown soft sugar
4 tablespoon tomato ketchup
2 tablespoon soy sauce
3 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon cornflour (cornstarch)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon minced ginger
Instructions
In a small bowl, mix the cornflour with a little bit of cold water to make a slurry. Set aside.
In a saucepan over medium heat, sauté the minced garlic and ginger until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add pineapple juice, light brown sugar, tomato ketchup, soy sauce, and rice wine vinegar to the saucepan. Stir well to combine.
Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer, stirring frequently. Gradually stir in the cornflour slurry and continue to cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the sauce thickens to your desired consistency.
Remove from the heat and let the sauce cool. Use immediately or store in the refrigerator for later use.
Enjoy your sweet and sour sauce with your favourite dishes!
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3–4 days. You can also freeze them in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months—just thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating. To reheat, warm it up in a pan over medium heat or in the microwave. If the sauce has thickened, add a splash of water or broth to loosen it up.
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Nisha says
The sweet and sour vegetable stir fry came out so delicious, loved the tangy sauce and that it was quick and easy to make.
Liz says
I made this as a side dish. Oh, my gosh, so delicious!!!
Vera says
Simple and delish! I have been looking for a good sweet & sour sauce. This is it! I made a bunch for meal prep for the next couple of days for lunch!
Nicole says
This stir fry was so delicious!! Absolutely loved the sweet and sour flavor. The recipe was simple and easy to follow.
nancy says
these veggies are the perfect side dish. i love the tang!
Swathi says
These sweet and sour vegetable fry is just awesome. My family enjoyed it. I am going to make again.
Melinda says
This stir fry was so good! My family loved the unique combination of veggies, it was our first time adding chick peas to stir fry and it was delicious. The sauce had just the right blend of sweetness.
Sonja says
Just what I needed for my weeknight dinner: My favourite takeout flavor, but healthy. So delicious and quick!
Gloria says
This recipe is just in time for dinner tonight. I have a bunch of veggies that need to be used up. I did not want to add meat, so the chickpeas are great.
Liz says
This veggie stir fry was so flavorful and tasty!! Both my husband and I enjoyed it!!
Alice says
This is the best veggie stir fry I've made! I added some broccoli and it disappeared quickly.