Orange Honey Chicken Recipe

I love Chinese food. Curling up on the couch with chopsticks in hand in front of the television while eating an effortless dinner is my idea of bliss at the end of an extra long day. Unfortunately, Chinese food doesn’t always agree with me and contains lots of hidden ingredients that aren’t the greatest on a regular basis: MSG, soy, cheap oils, etc. Enter this healthy version of one of my favorite chinese dishes. Okay, it’s not as effortless as take out, but it isn’t too difficult and makes for great leftovers. This skinny orange honey chicken recipe is full of flavor and is a great way to satisfy your Chinese food craving without tons of calories or bad ingredients. I serve this over steamed/sauteed broccoli and carrots or over cauliflower rice, brown rice, or whatever your chinese-food-lovin heart desires.

To make this you will need the following ingredients: chicken breasts, coconut oil, chicken stock, honey, garlic, orange juice, orange zest, coconut aminos, hot sauce, ground ginger, sesame seeds, red pepper flakes.

What the heck are coconut aminos you ask? Good question. It is a soy sauce replacement and it is delicious. I find it in the health food aisle or next to the soy sauce in my local grocery store when I’m lucky, but generally I go to Whole Foods or another health food store to find it. As you can see it has significantly less sodium than soy sauce and is organic, gluten free, has no GMOs or MSG, and is vegan. You go, coconut aminos.

When I say hot sauce above, I’m talking about a Sriracha type sauce. I know there are many Sriracha addicts anonymous (or not) out there. What Sriracha is to many, Frank’s Red Hot Sauce is to me. As in, I love it and put it on everything. However, when eating asian food, I prefer a Sriracha style sauce. Style being the key word in that last sentence. Now, feel free to ignore what’s coming if you are a tride and true Sriracha fan and will always be. In that case, go forth and use your Sriracha. I use the Sky Valley pictured below, as it has fewer chemicals, does not contain sugar or gluten, and is delicious.

To make this recipe, start by heating coconut oil in a skillet on medium heat. Then, cut your chicken into bite sized pieces and toss it into the pan once it is hot. (If you don’t like coconut oil: olive oil, sesame oil, or whatever your preference will work fine.)

While your chicken is cooking, mix together the delicious orange honey sauce. Also, start steaming your broccoli and carrots (or cooking your cauliflower rice) to serve the chicken over. Your sauce should look a little something like this:

Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the skillet and place it on a plate while you cook your sauce. You will let the sauce cook until it reduces and thickens. Once it has, add your chicken back into the skillet and toss until coated.

When your sides are finished cooking, place them in a bowl and top with chicken, then sprinkle with sesame seeds and a little extra orange zest, grab your chopsticks (or fork if you’re not a chopstick pro) and get to eating.

Orange Honey Chicken Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 Tablespoon of coconut oil

For the orange honey sauce:

• 1/4 cup of chicken stock
• 1/4 cup of fresh squeezed orange juice
• 3 Tablespoons of coconut aminos
• 3 Tablespoons of honey
• 1.5 Tablespoons of orange zest
• 2 teaspoons of minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons of hot sauce (Sky Valley or Sriracha)
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

DIRECTIONS:

1. Cut chicken into bite size pieces.
2. Melt coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
3. Add in the chicken and cook through until brown (about 12 minutes). Remove from heat and seat aside.
4. Mix the orange honey sauce by combining: chicken stock, fresh orange juice, coconut aminos, honey, orange zest, minced garlic, hot sauce, ginger, and red pepper flakes.
5. Pour the sauce into the same heated skillet you cooked the chicken in and cook until it reduces and thickens. Stir frequently to prevent burning.
6. When the sauce has thickened, add your chicken back to the pan and coat with the sauce.
7. Sprinkle sesame seeds and additional orange zest to taste over chicken. Then serve over steamed broccoli and carrots, cauliflower or brown rice, or stir fried veggies and enjoy!