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Chinese Sesame Chicken recipe made healthy, easy, and delicious with a Whole30 sesame chicken sauce. It’s savory, naturally sweet, healthy delicious. This is a must-have Chinese stir-fry dish for Sesame Chicken lovers!
If you love homemade takeout, you’ll also love my Panda Express honey sesame chicken!
One of my goals this year is to revisit some of my older recipes and make them even more user friendly. This new take on my Paleo Chinese Sesame Chicken has much-simplified ingredients and cooking steps, but is just as delicious as (if not more delicious than) the earlier version.
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Simplified Healthy Sesame Chicken (Whole30 friendly!)
Dates are a good replacement for honey if you are on Whole30. They add a hint of sweetness and thicken the sauce naturally. However because dates still pack with higher amount of natural sugar I recommend using them sparingly as the recipe describes below.
I blend all the sesame chicken sauce ingredients in a small food processor until they are very well chopped/blended with almost no fruit chunks. You can prepare the sesame chicken sauce ahead of time during meal prep and store it in a glass container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. If the paste gets too thick before using, simply add a tablespoon of water or chicken/veggie broth to thin it a bit.
Your Favorite Chinese Take Out – Chinese Sesame Chicken
I used a combination of boneless skinless chicken thighs and breasts to make my Paleo Chinese Sesame Chicken. In my opinion, all breast meat tends to give drier mouthfeel. You can absolutely use all thigh meat if preferred.
Dice the chicken into smaller bite sizes (cube shape), this will allow the meat to grab the sauce better and therefore be more delicious.
If you are wondering how to bring your stir-fry techniques to the next level (hint: golden brown gorgeous chicken stir-fry), I highly recommend that you check out this article I recently wrote for 7 stir-fry mistakes to avoid!
This Healthy Sesame Chicken Recipe is –
Healthy
Easy
Naturally Sweet
Savory
Family friendly
& Absolutely delicious !
If you give this dish a try, let me know ! Leave a comment and rate the recipe. And don’t forget to take a picture and tag it #IHeartUmami on Instagram. I’d love to see what you come up with. XOXO !
Paleo Chinese Sesame Chicken (Whole30, gluten-free)
Video
Ingredients
Paleo Chinese Sesame Chicken (Whole30):
- 1.25 lbs chicken thighs and breasts boneless skinless
- Salt and pepper to taste
- ¼ tsp ginger powder
- ½ tsp arrowroot powder alt. tapioca
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- White sesame seeds garnish
- Chopped scallions garnish
Aromatics:
- Ginger ,2 to 3 thin slices
- 1 large garlic clove ,thin sliced
Paleo Chinese Sesame Chicken Sauce (Whole30):
- 6 whole medjool dates ,pitted
- 1 small garlic clove
- 1 tsp fresh ginger
- 3 tbsp coconut aminos
- 2 tsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp tomato paste ,Whole30 compliant with no added sugar
- 1 tsp chili hot sauce ,optional (Whole30 compliant with no added sugar)
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 1 tbsp water
Instructions
- Sesame Chicken: Dice chicken to small bite-sizes (small cube shape) and season with salt, pepper, ginger, arrowroot powder, and olive oil. Mix well and set aside.
- Sesame Chicken Sauce: Pulse dates, garlic clove, and ginger in a small food processor a few times until finely chopped. Add the rest of ingredients under “sauce”. Toss/blend a few more times until the sauce is smooth and no fruit chunks.
- Pan-fry: Pre-heat a large stainless steel skillet (without oil) over low heat until it’s well heated (about 4-5 mins), add avocado oil and pan fry the chicken in separate batches (not to overcrowd the skillet). Don’t touch or move the chicken pieces until you see the bottom layer is in golden brown then cook the flip side until they are about 90-95% cooked through. Set aside with chicken juice in the skillet.
- Combine: Add a bit more cooking oil to the skillet, saute ‘aromatics’ with a sprinkle of salt until fragrant. Add 3-4 heaping tbsps of sesame chicken sauce*, quickly stir-fry the sauce with aromatics for 8-10 seconds then add the chicken back to the skillet. Coat the sauce over chicken pieces and stri-fry for a few additional minutes until they are cooked through. Garnish with sesame seeds and chopped scallions. Serve hot and immediately with steamed broccoli florets or any simple mixed green salad of your choice.
Notes
- Complete Steps 1 and 2. Store the sauce in food glass jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. If it becomes to thick, add 1 tbsp water/broth to thin the paste before using.
- Dice chicken to small bite sizes and add seasonings. Store in food glass container in the fridge if use the next day or store flat in large freezer friendly ziplock bags for later use. In Step 4, feel free to add more sauce if preferred.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
More Paleo Whole30 Stir-Fry Recipes:
- Paleo sweet and sour chicken
- Paleo Kung Pao Chicken
- Paleo Cashew Chicken
- Paleo Hunan Beef Stir-Fry
- Stir-Fried Beef In Oyster Sauce
- Thai Basil Chicken Recipe
- Paleo Thai Basil Beef Stir-Fry
- Paleo Mongolian Beef
- Chinese Pepper Steak
Also check out my Sesame Noodles recipe, Japanese roasted sesame dressing, Baked crispy sesame egg tofu, Baked or Air Fried Sesame Chicken, and Baby bok choy salad with toasted sesame dressing.
Once I preheat the skillet, do I then turn the heat up to high or do I leave it on low to medium low to stir fry the ingredients? Thank you!
Hi Michelle, if the skillet is well-heated, I’d use medium to medium-high to sear the chicken :))
Looks delicious. Can’t wait to have some!
Thanks, Jason !
Busted out the cusinart on a weekday to make this for the family. So worth it! The dates add just the right amount of sweetness. I loved the truck about the stainless pans…it made a perfect seer. This is the first recipe of yours I made can’t wait to make more!! Thank you!
That’s so lovely to hear. Thank you, Christy !
Super yummy, thanks! I had a mango I had to use up, so I replaced the dates with some mango chunks and it turned out great. Served with zoodles
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I really want to try this but I only have chicken thighs with the bone and skin on. Have you ever used this sauce on thighs and cooked in the oven or on the stovetop without dicing? It looks delish and I want to try tomorrow night!
Hi Brenna, no I haven’t. There’s a turmeric chicken thigh bake recipe on my site, using skin on and bone in chicken thighs. I think that might be a better fit for the ingredients you have handy.
I just made this today and it tastes EXACTLY like the sesame chicken I used to eat when I was a kid! Thank you so much for creating a paleo version and I can’t wait to try all of your other recipes!
Hi ChihYu – Do you have tips on doubling the sauce? We made this and everyone loved it – but wanted more sauce (esp the kids who served over rice). I thought about just doubling everything, but 12 dates sounds like a lot! What would you suggest?
Thanks!
Hi Tanya, yes that’s a great question. 12 dates are definitely too much if you double the original quantity. Hmm…I’d start with smaller quantity try 5-6 dates (also it depends on the size of the date). Blend and taste test. If not enough, then add a bit more. Hope that helps !
Thanks, ChihYu! we’ll give that a try 🙂
Seriously drooling! This looks just like what you could get at a restaurant but so much healthier for you 🙂
You’re recipes are always the best. So much flavor. YUM!!
I love your take on one of my favorite Chinese dishes. Love it!e