20 minute dinner brought to you by this insanely delicious and easy paleo orange chicken! A simple sauce with no sugar added, paired with juicy chicken and crunchy cashews.
Happy Wednesday! Every day this month feels super jam packed, so I’m resorting to all my favorite super simple meals! This orange chicken comes from a recipe on my old site, with just a few tweaks to make it even better than before! It’s one of those meals where you’re like “wait…how is something this easy SO good!?” And healthy 😉
The sauce is made from healthy, simple ingredients:
- Coconut aminos
- Juice of an orange
- Rice Vinegar
- Tomato paste
- Sesame oil
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Red pepper flakes
The chicken gets coated in tapioca flour (or starch; you can sub arrowroot starch here!), then sautéed quickly before simmering in the delicious sauce with the cashews. Don’t skip the tapioca (or arrowroot), as it helps to thicken the sauce!
You honestly won’t believe there is no sugar added to this sauce! It’s got the most perfect natural sweetness, and SO much flavor. I’m in love!
We love to pair this with jasmine rice. I make mine in the Instant Pot in 5 minutes, then toss in some steamed broccoli!
Making rice in the Instant Pot:
What you need:
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup rice
- 1 tsp avocado oil
- sea salt (optional)
Combine all ingredients in the Instant Pot with a quick stir. Lock the lid in place, then set the Instant Pot to pressure cook on HIGH for 5 minutes. Once the timer goes off for the 5 minutes, allow to sit and naturally release pressure for 5 minutes. Press the pressure release button to release any remaining pressure, then serve!
The Instant pot I have is linked here. I love it so much, especially for basic meal additions like this rice!
I am so excited for you guys to try this easy 20 minute dinner! This will totally be a new staple for you if you’re forever obsessed with takeout style meals like me!
Enjoy! xx
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Super simple no sugar added orange cashew chicken!
Ingredients
For the sauce:
- 1/3 cup coconut aminos
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- Juice of 1 orange
- 1 tsp of sesame oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger or 1 inch piece of fresh ginger minced
- Few good cracks of black pepper
- Red pepper flakes, to taste
For the chicken:
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
- 1.5 lbs chicken breasts, sliced into bite sized pieces
- 2 tbsp tapioca starch
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/3 cup raw cashews
For garnish: chives or green onion, sesame seeds
Instructions
- Whisk all ingredients for the sauce together in a bowl. Set aside.
- Toss the chicken pieces in the tapioca starch until evenly coated.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the avocado oil, then stir in the chicken and season with 1/2 tsp sea salt. Allow to cook, stirring occasionally, until cooked through (about 9-12 minutes).
- Add the sauce and cashews. Reduce heat to a simmer. Allow to simmer until sauce slightly thickens, about 5-7 minutes. Serve with fresh chives and sesame seeds (optional).
Colleen
I made this and shared with my boyfriend. He told me over 15 times how good it was and it was “the best thing I’ve ever made him” (I cook all the time so that was a serious compliment). Trying to limit takeout, so this is the perfect solution. Going into our rotation for sure. Oh I didn’t have cashews so I used slivered almonds and it totally satisfied.
★★★★★
Mia Zarlengo
No way!!! Thank you so much 🙂
Rachel
This tasted way better than any takeout I’ve ever had.
★★★★★
Mia Zarlengo
Wow!! Huge compliment- thank you Rachel!! xoxo
Izzy
I made this for my family and they absolutely loved it! Thank you Mia! It’s so easy to make and I will for sure be making it more often.
★★★★★
Mia Zarlengo
Thank you Izzy! So glad the fam enjoyed it xoxo
Michelle
SO MUCH FLAVOR wow!! I made this with some vegetarian friends for dinner & we simply replaced the chicken with baked cauliflower. Literally every recipe I have tried from this blog has knocked my socks off
★★★★★
Mia Zarlengo
Wow this just made my day!!! Thank you Michelle! 🙂
Lisa
Wish I could give this more stars!! We loved this! It didn’t lack flavor at all and I added extra veggies, PERFECTION!
★★★★★
Jackie
I seriously make this recipe at least once per week! So delicious and satisfying! My go to chicken recipe 🙂
★★★★★
Melody
We have a house full of little picky eaters (with food allergies), but any of Mia’s recipes are easily devoured by all of us no promvlem! I’ve never cooked with citrusy before and was SO happy I tried this recipe! My husband and kids were licking their plates!
★★★★★
Melody
*problem*
Sarah
Honestly never thought I would make homemade orange chicken. I thought it was generally an unhealthy, guilty pleasure. BUT this recipe is amazing! My boyfriend and I both love it and make it almost every week. You won’t be disappointed by this!
★★★★★
Abby
So good & easy!! A healthy twist on take-out favorite. I can’t wait to try the tofu version!
★★★★★
Allie
This recipe is delicious and an amazing alternative to getting take out. I will definitely be making this recipe again. So quick to make and great as leftovers too!
★★★★★
Amber
Y’all… you will NOT be disappointed. This recipe is so delicious! I’ve made multiple times for family and friends and it has been a favorite! It’s now a constant dinner rotation.
★★★★★
Maria D.
I’ve made this recipe 3x times in the last month and shared it to a handful of friends/family members. It’s going to be a forever favorite!
Love how fresh it tastes, doesn’t weigh you down like the take out version.
I’ve also successfully made it with chicken thighs, with whole wheat flour instead of tapioca starch, and Thai Lime & Chili Cashews from Trader Joe’s. It’s basic and flexible enough and I always have the ingredients on hand!
★★★★★
Natalie
So delicious!
★★★★★
Jena
A weeknight staple in my house. So tasty!
★★★★★
Mia Zarlengo
Love hearing that Jena! We make this or the tofu version weekly over here too! xo
Stephanie C
Wow! Wow! That’s literally all I can say! Just made this tonight and it was amazing! The hubby went back for seconds so that’s always a good sign. Such an easy weeknight recipe. Definitely adding it into our rotation! Thank you Mia for your easy and delicious recipes!
★★★★★
Mia Zarlengo
This truly makes me SO happy!! Thank you for the sweet note Stephanie- so happy you and your hubs enjoyed it 🙂
Karina
This was such an easy and DELICIOUS recipe!!! Thank you Mia for giving us such easy and nutritious options!!
★★★★★
Natalie
Absolutely loved this recipe, so quick and easy. I saved the extra sauce and I’m going to try to use it to top some baked salmon with it tonight.
★★★★★
Mia Zarlengo
Ohh that sounds delish with Salmon!! SO glad you liked it Natalie 🙂
Lindsey Keller
This dish is so insanely good!! I really love how Mia is a big sauce person, because you can take simple meat and veggies and add a bomb sauce and boom – you’re meal just went from a 3 to a 12. I tasked my boyfriend to make me this one night – he added a side of white rice & broccoli as well. 10x healthier than takeout Chinese. I love this dish!!
★★★★★
Julia
Can I sub tamari in for the coconut aminos? If so, do you think it would still require 1/3 cup?
Mia Zarlengo
Hi Julia,
Tamari is very salty compared to coconut aminos, so I don’t recommend subbing it here since it’s a decent amount!
Julia
Actually ended up subbing a little less than 1/3 cup and it came out great!!! Loved the cashews and added some sautéed onions.
★★★★★
Mia Zarlengo
So good to know!! Thanks for the note Julia xo
Lillie
This has to be one of my favorite recipes ever. It really does taste like something you would get at a restaurant! The best part is how surprisingly easy and quick it is too. My boyfriend also loves it! I’ve made it three times in the last week so it’s safe to say I’m obsessed. 🙂
★★★★★
Kianna
Finding a good-clean orange chicken recipe is really hard. There’s always something missing. HOWEVER, this one was a 10/10. All the flavors there, sweet and savory with a slight spice. I used thighs in the recipe in place of breasts. Best orange chicken ever. My whole family was blown away. Thank you Mia 🥰
★★★★★
Lisa P.
This is in our regular rotation. It is so good and tastes better than takeout with no guilt! It’s super easy and quick and usually I will make some cauliflower rice or regular rice blend and a green on the side. It’s the best cashew chicken recipe I’ve tried, and so much healthier!
★★★★★
Sam
Sooooo good! Super easy to make and has become a weekly meal for us! Love it!
★★★★★
Jessica Foley
I have made this so many times and it is very much loved by anyone I make it for.
Question though: if I don’t have any ginger on hand — any suggestions for what I could substitute ??
★★★★★
Mia Zarlengo
Yay so glad- thank you so much!! You could leave out the ginger if it comes down to it- maybe add a little extra garlic for more flavor!
Jonah
This tasted so good— just like my favorite takeout spot but guilt-free and great, healthy ingredients. I’m so thankful to have found this to put it in my rotation of staple dishes.
★★★★★
Betty
I made this for dinner tonight for the first time with a few substitutions, I used olive oil instead of sesame oil and white wine vinegar instead of rice vinegar since that was all I had on hand and it turned out so good! I will be making this again!
★★★★★
Chelsea
Made this last night, and holy cow!!! Cannot get over how flavorful the sauce is! So good and love how quickly it all came together!
★★★★★
Nikki
We make this about once a week now… it’s SO delicious, packed with flavor, and sooo easy to make! Can’t beat it!
★★★★★
Christina
This is one of my favorite recipes of all time! I make it at least once every week or so. I made it for my family during quarantine and they are equally obsessed with it. Thank you for sharing all your great recipes and talent!
Noelle
A-MAZE-ING!! This recipe is super easy and so delicious! The sauce is to die for. Definitely making again!
★★★★★
Mia Zarlengo
Yay!!! Thank you so much Noelle xoxo
Donna
How do I substitute in the tofu for the chicken on this recipe. Do I bake tofu separately in little cubes & then add at end. I don’t put tapioca or arrowroot on the tofu do I!?
Mia Zarlengo
There is a separate blog post for the tofu version!
Stephanie
This was a big hit in our house! My only changes were to use cornstarch (because that’s all I had -#quarantinecooking) and to add an extra juiced orange, but I think I just overdid the tomato paste and needed the extra sweetness to balance it. We will definitely add this to our regular rotation!
★★★★★
Carly
Mia, you seriously NEVER disappoint in your recipes!!!
★★★★★
Kayla
SOOO GOOD!!! Seriously tastes amazing!
★★★★★
Laura
Making this for the second time tonight. So delicious!!
★★★★★
Meg Domzalski
I just made this recipe for the first time and it is fabulous! I like it better than restaurant orange chicken which is always too sweet IMHO. Hubby loved it too. This is definitely going into the rotation!
★★★★★