Did you know you can make sauces out of citrus fruits (a December Foods of the Month)? Citrus sauces can make protein and veggies taste amazing! Our recipe for orange chicken is Asian inspired and is best served over brown rice. Throw in some veggies like snow peas for more flavor as well as fiber. We give this orange chicken recipe a big two thumbs up because it uses the juice from one whole orange (for lots of Vitamin C), as well as the rind (for even more antioxidants). When zesting an orange, like we do in this recipe, be sure to use an organic orange if possible. Because non-organic citrus fruit rinds are often sprayed with products, you may be consuming unhealthy chemicals if you eat the zest of a non-organic fruit that is not properly cleaned. To be safe, we pick organic when possible so we don’t get sick!
- 2 cups brown rice, cooked
- 2 chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch squares (about 1 pound)
- 1 tbsp. coconut oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- For the sauce
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup orange juice
- 1 orange (juice and zest)
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup brown rice vinegar
- 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
- 1 tbsp. whole wheat flour
- Crushed red pepper flakes, to taste (optional)
- First, boil water, and cook the brown rice according to directions. Set aside.
- Using the stovetop, heat coconut oil over medium-high heat in a skillet. Add cut up chicken, season with salt and pepper, and cook for about 10 minutes, until no pink remains.
- Meanwhile, whisk all the ingredients except the flour for the orange sauce together until thoroughly combined.
- Pour the orange sauce over the chicken and let it come to a boil. Add the flour and stir until it becomes thicker. Reduce heat to low and cook for another 5 minutes to let the flavors blend.
- Plate the rice, then pour the chicken mixture on top. Top with sesame seeds, scallions, or eat plain!
You may also like our recipe for healthy beef broccoli! Yum!
