Whole30 Orange Chicken with Cauli-Rice
Whole30 Orange Chicken with Cauli-Rice has lightly breaded chicken, a zesty thick sauce and Whole30 approved Cauli-Rice. This mouth-watering dish is easy to make and the perfect weeknight dinner.
Whole30 Orange Chicken with Cauli-Rice has been getting rave reviews from my taste testers. When I make a new recipe of course my own little family serve as my first round of taste testers, but I also send meals to other family and friends. I love hearing their opinions…the good and the bad! But this meal has only had good reviews!! From moms and their kids…so having a Whole30 approved meal that’s also Kid-approved is always a win win!
The sauce is the game changer for this dish. With the added orange juice and orange zest, there’s a citrus flavor mixed in with the tang from the dash of apple cider vinegar and almost sweetness from the coconut aminos. I like using Cassava flour because it helps thicken the sauce and it’s Paleo friendly and nut-free. It’s a thicker sauce and coats the bite sized chicken well. After serving it up over a big spoonful of cauli-rice, I like spooning a little more of the sauce over the entire dish just because it’s so yummy.
To make Whole30 Orange Chicken with Cauli-Rice I always begin with cooking the chicken. After it’s cut into bite size pieces, I toss it in the Cassava flour/sea salt mixture and then put it all into the warmed up skillet and let it cook. Be sure to place each bite sized piece in the bottom of the skillet and let it cook for a full 10 minutes before attempting to flip them. It will help ensure the light breading to stay on and give you the perfect golden brown on each piece. After the chicken is fully cooked, I remove it from the pan and start making the sauce in the same pan the chicken just came out of.
Making the sauce is very simple, just add all the sauce ingredients to a small bowl, stir it all together and then pour it into the still hot pan the chicken was just cooked in. Cook it over medium heat, stirring continually and breaking up any chicken pieces from the bottom of the pan, for about 7-10 minutes or until the sauce begins to thicken. Once the sauce is to the desired thickness, remove the pan from the heat and pour the sauce over the chicken.
Sometimes I’ll use a second pan and start cooking the cauliflower while the chicken is cooking. Other times I like to use the same pan (hello, fewer dishes to wash!!) as the chicken was made in. Adds a little more chicken flavor to the cauliflower and since it only takes 10 minutes to cook the cauliflower, the chicken and sauce won’t have time to get cold! Using a food processor do a few quick pulses to the cauliflower to make it about the same size as traditional rice. Scoop it out into the hot pan with the little bit of avocado oil and stir it around. Let it cook over medium heat while stirring every couple of minutes. It will be ready before you know it and you’ll be able to serve it to the family for the perfectly delicious weeknight dinner!
- 4 chicken breasts or thighs, cut to bite size pieces
- 2 Tbsp avocado oil
- 1/4 cup Cassava flour
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 cup coconut aminos
- 1 orange, freshly grated
- 1 orange, freshly squeezed
- 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 Tbsp avocado oil
- 1/4 cup Cassave flour
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp coarse ground pepper
- 1 head cauliflower
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil
- sea salt and pepper to taste
- 4 scallions, diced
- 1 Tbsp sesame seeds
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In a medium bowl combine the cassava flour and sea salt. Add the cut chicken pieces and toss to evenly coat the chicken.
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Heat skillet over medium-high heat. Add avocado oil and coat the bottom of pan. Add the chicken to the pan, making sure each piece is on the bottom of the pan.
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Cook for 10 minutes. Flip each piece of chicken. Cook for another 10 minutes or until cooked all the way through. Remove from pan.
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In a medium bowl combine the orange juice and zest, coconut aminos, apple cider vinegar, garlic powder, avocado oil, cassava flour, water, sea salt and pepper. Stir well.
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Heat skillet over medium heat. Pour mixture into the hot skillet. Stirring continually cook for 7-10 minutes or until sauce begins to thicken. Remove from heat and add to cooked chicken. Stir.
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Place cauliflower florets in food processor and pulse for a few seconds until the cauliflower resembles traditional rice.
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Heat skillet over medium-high heat. Add avocado oil to pan and coat the bottom of pan. Add the cauliflower. Stirring every couple minutes, cook cauliflower for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
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In a bowl place about 1/2 cup of Cauli-Rice. Using a serving spoon, add the chicken and sauce mixture on top. Top with diced scallions and sesame seeds. Serves 4 adults.
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More Whole30 meals:
Whole30 Rosemary Mustard Pork Chops
Paleo Turmeric Chicken Soup
Chicken Taco Spaghetti Squash Bake
I’m on a low FODMAP diet…could I replace the cassava with anything?
Hi Erica, thanks for the question! A quick Google search showed Teff flour is low FODMAP so you could certainly try using that. Or simply skip the flour part completely. I’ve made this recipe before without lightly breading the chicken and it worked just fine! Good luck and hope it works for you!!