Peanut Chicken
This saucy Peanut Butter Chicken is so tasty! Seared pieces of chicken are coated in a rich peanut (or almond!) butter sauce that’s loaded with ginger and garlic. This one pan meal takes just 30 minutes to make so it’s perfect for weeknight dinner and leftovers reheat well too! This Peanut Chicken is Grain Free, Gluten Free, Dairy Free and Specific Carbohydrate Diet Legal and you can swap the peanut butter for almond butter to make it Paleo and Whole30 too!
Why you are going to love this Peanut Chicken:
- The sauce! The sauce is ridiculously tasty, you will find yourself licking the plate! It’s the perfect blend of nut butter (almond or peanut) plus creamy coconut milk, fragrant ginger, garlic, chili for a bit of heat, coconut aminos which gives it a nice umami flavour and vinegar.
- It’s a one pan meal: Everything can be made in just one pan which means less clean up!
- All you need is 30 minutes: It’s a quick and easy meal to prepare and takes less than 30 minutes to make! This is ideal for weeknight dinner with minimal chopping required.
- It’s healthy: Swap the peanut butter for almond butter to make this dish Paleo and Whole30. It’s naturally grain free, gluten free and dairy free too!
Tips for making this Peanut Chicken:
- Natural nut butters tend to be quite oily and often separate in the jar with the creamy nut butter at the bottom and oil rising to the top. Before measuring out the nut butter to add to the sauce be sure to stir it otherwise the dish will end up being quite oily.
- The sauce will thicken as it cooks so don’t hesitate to leave it to simmer for a while to help thicken it more. If the sauce becomes too thick, add a splash more chicken stock and stir it through the sauce to thin it out.
- I like to give the chicken crispy browned edges which I find adds flavour and a bit more texture to the dish. When searing the chicken, be sure to leave the pieces to cook for a few extra minutes until they develop a nice golden colour.
- You can add more or less chili depending on your tolerance for spice. I find that adding a full chili is just the right amount of heat that helps to cut through the richness of thee sauce.
- Not on a soy or gluten free diet? Feel free to swap the coconut aminos for soy sauce or tamari (gluten free soy sauce).
How to serve Peanut Chicken:
- I love serving this peanut chicken over sauteed cauliflower rice which does an amazing job of soaking up all of that delicious sauce. For a more carb heavy alternative serve it over steamed white or brown rice.
- Add a wedge of lime to the side of the bowl as a garnish. A squeeze of lime juice really helps to make the flavors of the sauce pop.
- Garnish this peanut chicken with cilantro, chopped scallions/green onions or slices of chilis
Leftovers/Make Ahead:
This entire dish can be prepared up to a day in advance. Reheat the chicken and sauce in a skillet on medium low heat until warmed through. Add a splash of chicken stock to the sauce and stir it through if it appears to be too thick. Leftover will last for up to 4 days in the fridge or it can be frozen for 3 months.
Here are a few more one pan chicken recipes that you might enjoy…
- Chicken Chop Suey
- Mexican Chicken & Rice Skillet
- Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs
- Sheet Pan Greek Chicken
- Garlic Mushroom & Bacon Chicken Thighs
If you make this recipe let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!
Peanut Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken thighs cut into cubes
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger
- 3 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 onion finely diced
- 1 red bell pepper chopped into small pieces
- 1 fresno chili pepper finely diced
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar (or rice vinegar if not following SCD)
- 3 tbsp coconut aminos (or tamari/soy sauce)
- 1/2 cup almond or peanut butter
- 1 can (400ml) coconut milk
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 2/3 cup chicken stock
- 1/2 lime for garnish
- 2 tbsp cilantro for garnish
Instructions
- Add the oil to a large skillet on high heat. Season the cubed chicken with salt and pepper and once the oil is hot, add the chicken to the pan. Cook the chicken for approximately 5 minutes until it is golden in colour.
- Once the chicken is seared, remove it from the pan (leaving any remaining oil in the skillet) and set it aside on a plate.
- Add the ginger, garlic, onion, bell pepper and fresno chili to the pan. reduce the heat to medium and saute for 3 minutes until the bell pepper begins to soften and the ginger is fragrant.
- Add the vinegar and coconut aminos to deglaze the pan. Use a wooden spoon to remove any bits stuck to the pan. Next add in the nut butter, coconut milk, tomato paste and chicken stock, lower the heat to medium and bring to a simmer.
- Once the sauce is simmering, return the chicken to the sauce and leave it to simmer for 10-12 minutes. If the sauce becomes too thick, stir in more chicken stock to thin it out.
- Serve the chicken with lots of sauce over cauliflower rice. Garnish with cilantro and wedges of lime.
Holy wow! This is so darn delicious 🤤
Definitely a winner, will be making again and again.
Yum!!! So simple and satisfying
This recipe is DELICIOUS! Thank you