Healthy Sesame Chicken is a delicious, healthy dinner! Packed with protein, low in carbs, and gluten free – it’s simple to make & better than takeout!
If you like sesame chicken – you have to try this Healthy Sesame Chicken! It’s just as satisfying as takeout but made with better-for-you ingredients. Plus, it only takes 25 minutes from start to finish.. and you know that you’d be waiting that long for delivery anyways!
Unlike traditional sesame chicken, which is usually deep-fried and loaded with sodium, this version is cooked on the stovetop to keep it lower in fat and carbs.
It’s made with simple, wholesome ingredients you can feel good about and easily find at any grocery store.
Time Saving Tips for Homemade Sesame Chicken
- Have everything on the counter – This will make it super simple to grab everything you need while you’re cooking.
- Get precooked rice! All you have to do is tear the bag open and microwave.. doesn’t get much simpler than that!
- Whisk together the ingredients for the sauce + put everything away while the chicken cooks.
Ingredients
Substitutions
- Chicken: You can sub chicken breasts with boneless chicken thighs or chicken tender.
- Rice: You can serve this over any type of cooked rice or grain. Quinoa is great with this or you can do cauliflower rice. This would go great with our Fried Cauliflower Rice!
- Avocado Oil: If you don’t have avocado oil you can use olive oil or coconut oil.
- Green Beans: You can sub in green beans with broccoli or any other veggies you like.
- Coconut Aminos – If you don’t have coconut aminos you can use low sodium soy sauce. Low sodium soy sauce is usually higher in sodium.
- Honey: You can substitute honey with maple syrup.
- Toasted Sesame Oil: This is essential to the recipe. It adds that rich sesame flavor! Sesame oil and toasted sesame oil are not the same. Toasted sesame oil has much more flavor.
- Fresh Ginger: If you want to use fresh ginger, you can use 1 teaspoon, grated.
- Rice Vinegar: If you don’t have rice vinegar, omit it. You can add a splash more of coconut aminos.
- Paleo: to make paleo sub rice for cauliflower rice. We love our cauliflower fried rice!
How to Make Sesame Chicken
- Whisk together your sesame sauce.
- Brown the chicken and set it aside.
- Add your sauce to the same pan and bring to high heat. Cook until sauce is thickened and pulls away from the pan.
- Add chicken back to the pan, toss in sauce + serve with green beans/white or brown rice!
- Add chicken back to the pan, toss in sauce + serve with green beans/white or brown rice!
Sesame Seed Chicken FAQ
What is the difference between sesame chicken and General Tso’s chicken?
Sesame chicken is very different from General Tso’s. The main difference is that General Tso’s chicken is tossed in a chili-based sauce, while sesame chicken is made with a sesame sauce.
Healthy Sesame Chicken
Healthy Sesame Chicken is a delicious, healthy dinner! Packed with protein, low in carbs, and gluten free – it’s simple to make & better than takeout!
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into 1 inch cubes
- 1/2 tablespoon avocado oil
For the Sauce:
- 1/4 cup coconut aminos
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon garlic cloves minced
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon lime zest (zest of one lime)
- 1 tablespoon lime juice (juice of one lime)
- 1 tablespoons sesame seeds for garnish
Optional For Serving
- 2 cups cooked green beans
- 1 cup cooked white rice
Instructions
- Prep your chicken by cutting into small cubes. Cook white rice and green beans according to directions.
- In a pan, heat avocado oil for 1 minute. Add chicken to the pan and sauté chicken over medium high heat until browned on all sides, approximately 10-12 minutes.
- While chicken is cooking, whisk together the sauce.
- Once chicken is cooked, remove from the pan + set aside.
- Pour sauce mixture into the hot pan (no need to clean it!) and cook for 3-5 minutes over medium high heat until it starts to bubble, stirring consistently. The sauce will thicken quickly, but be careful to watch that it doesn't burn.
- Add cooked chicken back into the pan and coat in sauce.
- Serve sesame chicken over cooked rice and green beans.
Notes
Substitutions for this Healthy Sesame Chicken Recipe:
- Chicken – You can substitute chicken breasts with chicken thighs.
- Avocado Oil – If you don’t have avocado oil, you can use olive oil or refined coconut oil
- Green Beans – You can sub in green beans with broccoli or any other veggies you like
- Coconut Aminos – If you don’t have coconut aminos, you can use low-sodium soy sauce or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos.
- Fresh Ginger – If you don’t have fresh ginger, you can use 1/2 teaspoon of dried ground ginger.