Paleo Orange Chicken
Chinese food, without the MSG and dog meat. Hehehe, just kidding.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs (cut into bite size pieces)
- 3 T fat (coconut oil works well here)
- juice of 2 oranges*
- zest from 1 orange
- 1 t fresh ginger
- 3 T coconut aminos or wheat-free soy sauce
- 1 t chili garlic sauce or sriracha
- 3 green onions, chopped
Method
In a medium size sauce pot, add the orange juice, zest, ginger, coconut aminos and chili garlic sauce or sriracha. Set over medium heat and let simmer to reduce and thicken while the chicken cooks.
In a saute pan, heat 3 T of the fat of your choice, over medium high heat. Add the chopped chicken thighs and cook until a nice brown crust has developed on the chicken pieces, about 6 minutes.
Add the chicken to the sauce pot and stir to coat with the orange sauce.
Serve topped with sliced green onions.
*Taste your oranges. If they don’t taste orange-y, then neither will this dish. Use tangerines if you gotta or add a teaspoon of sweetener until you’re satisfied with the flavor.
You’ve done it again!!
Think i might just have to make this instead of the pad thai i was going to make tonight haha.
You’re the best
Why didn’t we think of the broccoli option when we made this???!!! That sounds awesome.
Oh yeah, it’s because we had an aging cauliflower.
I know what I am now going to make this weekend! My mouth is watering already!
This looks amazing! What are coconut aminos? Is it shredded coconut? I’ve not heard the term and can’t wait to try this recipe.
it’s a coconut alternative to soy sauce. very similar in taste. it’s a bit pricey and definitely a hard-to-find kind of thing, so wheat-free soy sauce is our alternative.
This was awesome! I made it along with the pork fried rice recipe minus the pork. I made a few changes based on ingredients I had on hand, but oh my goodness, it was so good! Thank you! You have an awesome blog!!!
We really appreciate that Kara.
I made this for dinner Sunday evening along with pork fried “rice.” All I can say is… OM NOM NOM!!
hahaha. nice…thanks justin!
Made this last night with 4 boneless skinless thighs and two breasts…. There were only two of us and no leftovers because we scarfed it all down. Great recipe! Thanks!
thanks angie!
This is the BEST recipe I’ve made from your blog so far… all the other ones are great but I make this once a week. Like right now… it’s shovel-able.
bahahaha. love it! thanks kootz!
Made the orange chicken last night, another winner from HB!!
Is it bad that I doubled the recipe and ate 2/3 of it? Gluttony comes to mind, but I may be wrong
you’re asking me? ha!
as embarrassing as it is to admit, even when i’m full, i will continue to eat just for the sake of being able to keep tasting the food. i have problems. hahaha.
Oh I have missed Chinese food since switching to a paleo diet! Making this tomorrow… for breakfast!
hahaha! that’s what i’m talking about katie! hope you enjoy.
[...] purely because the device I was using almost zested some of my skin off! I got this recipe from Health-Bent, their picture is prettier than mine! Paleo Orange Chicken Tweet Posted by Jen C Categories: [...]
my sauce did not thicken
what did i do wrong?
it’s not going to thicken like gravy. the longer you let the sauce sit on the heat, the more water will evaporate and the thicker it will become. hope that helps a bit!
I couldn’t get it to work either. It tasted and looked like soy sauce….my fault being a bad cook, not the recipe! Any advice? I’m so looking forward to making this look like the pic and taste like it should.
hmmm, i guess just remember to taste as you go. if it tastes too much like soy, then you can always add more orange or chili.
Thanks! I plan on making this again soon. I’m so excited by your site I’m cooking my way through it. the pot pie was great.
just started the sauce for tonight… already had it at friends. it’s amazing. thanks!
also the asian grilled skirt steak (we use angus sirloin) is phenomenal. we make that like once a week.
[...] Orange Chicken (Health-Bent) [...]
When you serve this with the fried rice, do you include the pork or just leave it out?
we left it out.
I think this was my first real paleo recipe, and OMG, it is YUMMY! I’m making it again tonite!
thanks erin!
Tried this tonight.. great recipe. Would recommend cutting the soy sauce by half if used as a substitute. Came out salty even with reduced sodium soy. Otherwise great! Will make again.
Made this tonight. I agree about cutting the soy, as I also used low-sodium soy and it was very strong. I didn’t have oranges so I used 4 clementines, which would have been fine except the peel doesn’t zest as well as an orange. My husband loved it and I thought it was pretty good. Definitely something I’d like to re-try and do the right way.
Man, I thought I messed this up bc my sauce wasn’t really thick, but I was wrong- it was fantastic!! The perfect amount of everything! I can’t wait to make the fried rice!! Thank you for another awesome recipe!
glad you enjoyed chrissy! thanks!
What type of chili garlic sauce do you use? The ones I see always have a lot of sugar.
Thanks!
this is the one, no sugar. but beware…it’s hot!
http://www.amazon.com/Huey-Fong-Chili-Garlic-18/dp/B000LO25RG/ref=pd_sim_gro_5
I made this with the fried “rice” tonight – YUM! I put too much chili sauce in the rice, my tongue is on FIRE. The flavor of the orange chicken was delicious! My sauce didn’t really thicken either, but it was still super delicious!
thanks rebecca!
I made this tonight and the sauce was impossibly bitter. I guess the Cara Cara Navel Oranges that smelled so nice and looked so pretty were more like grapefruit. Even after a massive reduction with 1/4 C added honey and bottled orange juice, I could not tame the bitterness. Too much zest? I was careful not to get any pith with my microplane.
it’s probably a combo or bitter citrus and the zest. not much you can do once it’s bitter…i think. the oranges have to be at least semi-sweet off the bat
I made this tonight and it ended up a little bitter and a little salty. I boiled a potato in it a while to absorb some of the saltiness and then added some honey. It turned out delicious. I will definitely be more careful with the amount of soy I use and I will wait until the sauce is thicker before I add my zest. Otherwise, delicious with my zucchini noodles and steamed carrots and snow peas.
hmmm, you think it was the orange or the soy being reduced? i’m glad you salvaged it though. thanks april!
Made this tonight, great, will be making again and again. Added a splash of fish sauce and when serving sprinkled toasted sesame seeds on top. Served with rice (oh the horror, ha ha) and stir-fry veggies. To to the folks who were complaining of saltiness, I wonder if they’re using soy sauce like Kikoman? Tamari is much less salty and has a better depth of flavour, for what it’s worth. Thanks for a a great recipe, we literally shoveled it in our mouths! : )
that’s a good question. i didn’t even think about that. we use gluten free reduced sodium soy sauce…so maybe that’s the issue. so glad you enjoyed jenny!
I always love this recipe but was wondering if some almond flour in the sauce would help thicken it just a tad. I’m always too nervous to try for fear of messing up such a perfect meal.
I’m not sure almond flour would be welcome in it. It will reduce (evaporate) and thicken if you give it enough time. Just leave it on the heat until it’s as thick as you like and you’ll be golden.
we followed this recipe completely and it was completely inedible. bitter and salty and gross. ick. at least it looked pretty?
did you happen to taste the orange by itself? any pith make it into the zest?
Tried it and unfortunately it came out bitter for me as well. I may have been a little too agressive with the zesting, or I may try it without the zest next time.
did you taste the oranges? if the oranges aren’t sweet…i’d imagine that’s why it was bitter. did you add any sweetener like i mentioned in the recipe?
Looks like an awesome recipe that I’d love to try. The dog meat comment is a little offensive though.
Made this tonight for dinner!
KIDS LOVED it! I LOVED it! Hubby said it was good, but ‘different’.
the whole family has been going through some food pains since I started eating Primal~
I made them rice.
Was wonderful and slightly sweet but orangy! Got organic navel oranges from the co-op and they smelled and tasted SO GOOD!
I’ve tried two recipes so far from your site and both have been SPOT ON!
THANK YOU!
sooooo happy to hear this angelia! thank you!