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Whole30 Orange Sauce Chicken Thighs

(mydeliciousmeals.com)Alena Tarasevich

A good sauce can make a dish, that’s why this orange chicken is a favorite among adults and kids alike. The first Orange Chicken we tried was from Trader Joe’s, and my husband started craving it (no wonder it consistently tops their annual Customer Choice Awards as the best entrée in their store). So I decided to create a healthier version of orange chicken. Chunks of chicken are dredged in arrowroot then seared to seal in the juices and served in a mildly spicy, orange flavored sauce sweetened with date paste. Serve with blanched broccoli to get a terrific lunch or dinner in less than 30 minutes.

Ingredients

5 chicken thighs (cut into bite size pieces)
1/3 cup arrowroot starch
2 tablespoons avocado oil
salt
pepper
■■■■ SAUCE: ■■■■■
3 tablespoons date paste (click for the easy recipe, or use 1/2 amount of honey instead)
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup orange juice (freshly squeezed)
orange zest (finely grated, from 1 orange)
ginger (1-inch piece, finely grated)
1 clove garlic (large, finely grated)
1/2 tablespoon arrowroot starch
1 tablespoon water (to mix in arrowroot)
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or to taste)

Yield:

servings

Prep time:

7 minutes

Cook time:

20 minutes

Total time:

27 minutes

Yield: 5 servings | Prep time: 7 minutes | Cook time: 20 minutes | Total time: 27 minutes

Cook Mode - Prevent screen from going dark

Instructions

1. Cut chicken into bite size pieces. Place in a bowl together with arrowroot starch, toss to coat chicken in arrowroot.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sear chicken on all sides (about 3 minutes per side), until lightly browned (no need to cook through at this point). Season with salt and pepper.

3. While the chicken is cooking, prepare the sauce. In a saucepan, combine date paste, water, orange juice, orange zest, ginger, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a light boil. In a separate cup, mix together the rest of the water and arrowroot starch. Add to the sauce pan, stir and cook on medium for about 3 minutes, until the sauce thickens.

4. Pour the sauce over the chicken, bring to a light boil, and cook for another 7-10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.

5. Serve with broccoli or cauliflower rice.

Shop products and ingredients I recommend for this recipe:

Arrowroot Starch

Avocado Oil

Dates

Crushed Red Pepper

Ginger Root

Garlic

Note: This post may contain affiliate links for products I like. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This means that if you click on a link and make a purchase, I'll earn some coffee money at no cost to you, which I promise to drink while creating more helpful recipes like this ;) Thank you for supporting My Delicious Meals!

About Alena

Welcome to my website!

I’m Alena, the blogger at MyDeliciousMeals since 2010. My goal with MyDeliciousMeals is for you to discover the joy of cooking and to find lots of new favorite recipes that your family will enjoy. I’m so happy you stopped by!

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Take-out without the guilt

Victoria

The word “healthy” and “orange chicken” don’t usually go together but somehow you did it! As you suggested, I substituted honey for date paste. Fabulous meal!

alenatrs

Thank you so much for the awesome review, Victoria! - Alena