Chicken Stir Fry with Paleo Almond Satay Sauce

Chicken Stir Fry with Paleo Almond Satay Sauce

Before we jump into the recipe, I wanted to share a few fun things that have been going on lately. I received the first copy of my new cookbook, The Paleo Foodie Cookbook! It was so much fun reading through it. I even made a little video, so you guys could get a sneak peek too! If you plan to purchase it, it would mean so much to me if you pre-ordered it. Pre-ordering is awesome because it plays a big role in the overall success of the book, but it also guarantees you the lowest Amazon price between now until the book ships. Pre-order HERE.

My girlfriends are so sweet. They took me out to celebrate my book at one of our favorite restaurants. We had jalapeno margaritas and homemade ice cream. Such a perfect combo! 🙂  It was actually their last weekend at that location, and our amazing server gave us many of the chef’s “secrets”. So, I am excited to try to recreate a few of the things we had, like the most creamy ice cream known to man! I am going to fiddle with a dairy and a dairy-free version of it soon.

I also had an opportunity to do a book signing and recipe sampling for my first cookbook, The Paleo Slow Cooker. It was at New Leaf on the west side of Santa Cruz. This was special since many of the ingredients I used to develop the recipes in this book and my new book came from this store! The books sold out in the first 30 minutes! It was really fun meeting blog readers and people that were new to the Paleo diet or just curious about it.

Chicken Stir Fry with Paleo Almond Satay Sauce

I always think that I am going to whip-up a quick stir-fry, but it never actually works out that way. It requires quite a bit of chopping, which I don’t mind. I find prep cooking relaxing, when I don’t have a hungry toddler, sitting at my feet and repeating the words “nom-nom” … her way of saying “feed me now!”.

We have been having this stir-fry a lot lately. In fact, I just made it again last night! Since it takes so much work to chop everything, I like to make a huge portion, so that we can enjoy it for a few days. It is so flavorful, delicious and satisfying. We eat white rice about once a week,  so I served this with white rice last night, but it is plenty filling on its own.

Sesame Oil Tip

I used to avoid cooking with sesame oil, even though my husband loves the flavor with stir-frys. I was concerned that it was not heat stable due to it’s high polyunsaturated fat content. But, I was chatting with my friend Liz recently and she mentioned that it actually was safe for heat cooking. Liz is a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner and she is very knowledgeable about health and nutrition. She actually just wrote a book (that I highly recommend!) called, Eat the Yolks that is available now for pre-order.

So, I looked it up in the most thorough book about fats and oils that I know of, Know Your Fats. Just like Liz had explained to me, Mary G. Enig wrote, “Sesame oil has very good oxidative stability, which is thought to be related to sesamin or another antioxidant in the native oil” (p.122).

I like to use this brand because the sesame oil is organic, unrefined and cold-pressed.

This recipe works best in a wok, as there are a lot of vegetables and it would be difficult to fit them into a saute pan or a skillet. I use this cast iron wok and love it! I also love using this wok to deep fry things like sweet potato fries!

Chicken Stir-Fry with Paleo Almond Satay Sauce

Ingredients
2 tablespoons unrefined, cold-pressed sesame oil (I use this one), divided
1.5 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs – cut into 1.5 inch chunks
salt and pepper
2 carrots, chopped
1 onion, sliced
4 cups of broccoli, florets and stems diced up
2 zucchinis, chopped
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 jalapeno, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1 cup of Paleo Almond Satay Sauce (find the recipe here)

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of sesame oil in a wok over medium high heat. Add the chicken to the wok and generously salt and pepper it. Consistently stir the meat with a wooden spoon until it is cooked through and no longer pink inside, about 10 to 15 minutes.
2. Remove the cooked chicken and set aside. If a lot of liquid has accumulated in your wok, drain it and wipe the wok out.
3. Add the additional tablespoon of sesame oil to the wok, then add the vegetables that require longer cooking times first. Add the carrots, onions and diced up broccoli stems (if you are using them), cook until vegetables are softened, stirring constantly, about 5 to 7 minutes.
4. Then add the broccoli florets, zucchinis, bell pepper, jalapeno, garlic, mushrooms and ginger. Generously salt and pepper the vegetables and cook until tender, but still have some crunch.
5. Add the chicken back in and add the satay sauce. Stir until the chicken is mixed in with the vegetables and all the vegetables are well coated with sauce.
6. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
7. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

I recommend making the entire serving of satay sauce and using the leftovers for other meals throughout the week, like lettuce wraps. Alternatively, you can half the recipe and it will make the right amount for this stir-fry.

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