A visible light responsive photocatalytic hybrid with excellent photoelectrochemical activity was first fabricated via the self-assembly of Au nanorods onto poly(l-cysteine) modified graphitic carbon nitride nanosheets. Herein, layered structural graphitic carbon nitride nanosheets with a proper band gap, high stability, and nontoxicity, as a photoactive material, demonstrate a high photocatalytic activity. Furthermore, the incorporation of multifunctional Au nanorods gave the hybrid a Schottky barrier and localized surface plasmonic resonance, which considerably enhanced the separation of the photo-excited electrons and holes, resulting in increased photoelectrochemical performance. As a proof of concept, mercapto-beta-cyclodextrin as a bionic recognition device was introduced into the hybrid to selectively detect naringin on the basis of the dramatic decreasing of photocurrent. The visible-light driven photoelectrochemical sensor exhibited excellent analytical performance, including high sensitivity, good selectivity and wide linear range from 1 × 10(-4) to 1 × 10(-10) M.