Chelsea dominated the majority of the 90 minutes, though their goal was fortuitous, with Lee Cattermole poking the ball into his own goal.
The Blues seemed to be heading to the last four until a late Fabio Borini equaliser took the match to extra time.
From then on the Premier League's bottom club were the better side and Ki Sung-Yueng scored a deserved winner.
Sunderland will end the year bottom of the Premier League regardless of their incredible achievements in the League Cup.
But manager Gus Poyet regarded this quarter-final as an opportunity to galvanize his players for the club's fight for top-flight survival.
And the Uruguayan will surely be heartened by his players' character and courage during what were a demanding 120 minutes.
With a match against league leaders Arsenal on the horizon, extra time was a scenario Jose Mourinho would have dreaded, but Chelsea only had themselves to blame as they failed to capitalised on their dominance and allowed Sunderland to prolong what had been a turgid match up until Borini's dramatic strike.
The tireless Black Cats frustrated a Chelsea side which was much changed from the one which beat Crystal Palace in the league on Saturday. But whatever personnel the Portuguese chooses, it continues to be the same story for a Blues team which has too often been toothless inside the box this season.
Willian, who had the freedom to float around the pitch, was the away team's most potent player and had the best chance of the first half. Yet the Brazilian failed to capitalise on a Wes Brown error and dragged his effort wide of the far post.
Another Brown mistake, the defender again ceding possession near his own goal, led to another Chelsea chance but this time it was Samuel Eto'o who failed to make the most of his opportunity.
In truth, Mark Schwarzer was underemployed in the Chelsea goal. A penalty appeal for a Cesar Azpilicueta handball was all the sparse 20,000 crowd had to shout about until Borini rewrote the script.
Chelsea had far more zip after the break, with Lee Cattermole's own goal giving the visitors the boost they needed.
Goal decision system technology was used before deciding whether to allow the goal, and replays also showed that Cattermole, rather than Frank Lampard, had the final touch as both players slid goalwards in chase of Azpilicueta's fine cross.
It was Sunderland's sixth own goal of the season, a seemingly ever-increasing statistic which has already left manager Poyet cursing his players' positioning rather than bad luck.
The hosts continued to make life difficult for themselves, with Gardner squandering possession too close to his own goal to give Eto'o the chance to come within a whisker of doubling his side's advantage.
It was all Chelsea - Andre Schurrle and Demba Ba went close to doubling the visitors lead - but the Londoners were not clinical enough in the final third of the pitch and paid the price as Borini forced the match into extra time.
Jozy Altidore's shot ricocheted towards Borini and the Italian finished from an acute angle for his second goal of the season.
Borini had the chance to finish the match in full time but a well-timed Gary Cahill tackle saved Chelsea.
Early on in extra time it was Mannone's turn to keep his side in the contest, with the goalkeeper diving low to save David Luiz's volley, but the momentum was with Sunderland.
Borini scuffed an effort at the far post and a brilliant one-handed save from Mark Schwarzer prevented Ki's diving header from finding the net. But the veteran Australian could do little to prevent the midfielder from scoring for a memorable victory.
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