Crispy Gluten Free Honey Sesame Chicken makes the perfect weeknight dinner recipe!
Served with rice and veggies, a complete high protein meal is just 30 minutes away. It's much faster than you'd expect, and these succulent chicken bites are a welcome change of pace from chicken thighs or roast chicken!
Quick Look: Gluten Free Honey Sesame Chicken
⏲️Ready In: 30 Minutes
🍽Servings: 4
🥗Nutrition: 470 Calories / 47g Protein
🥘Main Ingredients: Chicken thighs, Honey, Tamari/Soy sauce, Rice vinegar, Sesame seeds
📋Dietary Notes: Gluten free, Grain free, Nut free, Dairy free
⭐Why You'll Love It: Fast and easy, this high protein weeknight dinner recipe can be whipped up in 30 minutes!
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High protein chicken bowls are something of a specialty on Chelsea Joy Eats lately - see favorites like Gluten Free Honey Garlic Chicken Bowls, Gluten Free Chicken Teriyaki Bowls, and Gluten Free Kung Pao Chicken!
All with similar steps, they each make quick high protein dinners with differing flavor profiles.
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Key Ingredients
Chicken Thighs: Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are the go-to for this recipe, but you can easily swap in boneless, skinless chicken breast like I used for Honey Garlic Chicken Bowls!
Arrowroot Flour: For a crispy coating, I like using arrowroot flour. You can use a gluten free flour blend if you'd like, but arrowroot is my top choice! You could substitute potato starch as well.
Honey: Use whatever honey you'd like, but note that clover honey will have a lighter, floral flavor.
Tamari/Soy Sauce: I typically use tamari for my recipes, and usually opt for the low sodium version! You can use coconut aminos as well.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make Gluten Free Honey Sesame Chicken
Step 1: Cut the chicken into 1 ½ - 2" pieces and pat dry with paper towels. Stir the arrowroot, salt, and pepper together in a bowl and toss with the chicken until each piece is coating.
Step 2: In a separate bowl, whisk together the honey, tamari, ginger, garlic, and rice vinegar. Set aside.
Step 3: Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken, working in batches if necessary to avoid overcrowding the pan, and cook, undisturbed, for 5-6 minutes before flipping and cooking for another 5 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate.
Step 4: Add the honey mixture to the skillet and scrape up any chicken bits left on the pan. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently, until reduced and thickened.
Step 5: Add the chicken back to the skillet along with the sesame seeds and stir to coat. Turn off heat and serve immediately.
Top Tips from Chelsea
Don't overcrowd the pan. When cooking the chicken, you may have to cook in batches to avoid overcrowding. If all the chicken pieces are touching, they're too close together and won't get crispy!
For the best browned chicken, don't stir it too much. Only stir the chicken once or twice before removing from the skillet. Stir it too frequently, and the Maillard reaction won't have a chance to do its thing to brown and sear the meat.
The sauce thickens as it cools. The honey sesame sauce will thicken a bit once you take it off the heat.
Don't pile up the chicken. When you remove the chicken from the skillet, avoid piling it on top of each other on the plate or in a bowl. I've made this mistake - all the crispiness you worked so hard to get will disappear if the chicken sits in a clump!
Use chicken breast for a higher protein meal like Honey Garlic Chicken Bowls - you may need to cook the chicken a little longer to reach 165 degrees F, though.
Honey Sesame Chicken FAQs
We like serving gluten free honey sesame chicken with rice or cauliflower rice as well as a green vegetable like broccoli, bok choy, snap peas, or beans. You can either roast the vegetable(s) or give them a quick sauté in the same skillet you cooked the honey sesame chicken in.
Yes, go for it! The method should be the same (just like Honey Garlic Chicken Bowls), although chicken breast may take a little longer to cook.
Yes, the two make good substitutes for each other in this recipe. However, arrowroot may make crispier chicken pieces. Potato starch should also work well!
More high protein weeknight dinners
Did you try this gluten free Honey Sesame Chicken recipe? I'd love to hear what you think! Please leave a comment and rating or tag me on Instagram - I appreciate your feedback.
📖 Recipe
Honey Sesame Chicken
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Cook Time: 20 Minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Frying
- Cuisine: Chinese
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
On the hunt for a simple gluten free high protein weeknight dinner with tons of flavor? Honey sesame chicken is where it's at, done in 30 minutes!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
- ¼ cup arrowroot powder
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup honey
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- ¼ cup tamari/coconut aminos
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
Instructions
- Prepare chicken. Cut the chicken thighs into bite-sized, 2-inch chunks and add to a medium bowl. Add the arrowroot flour, salt, and pepper, and toss to coat each piece of chicken in the flour.
- Prepare sauce. In a separate bowl, whisk together the honey, rice vinegar, tamari/coconut aminos, ginger, and garlic until smooth. Set aside.
- Cook chicken. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces to the skillet and cook for 5-6 minutes before stirring. Continue to cook for 5-6 more minutes, stirring once or twice, until browned and crisped on all sides. Work in batches if necessary-they won't brown properly if you load up the skillet too tightly. Remove the chicken to a plate while you cook the sauce.
- Reduce sauce. Pour the honey mixture into the skillet. It should immediately start bubbling. Reduce heat to a simmer and simmer for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Add the chicken back to the skillet along with sesame seeds and stir to coat. Remove from heat.
- Assemble bowls. Serve over white rice or cauliflower rice. Garnish with extra sesame seeds or sliced green onions, if desired.
Notes
- For the best browned chicken, don't stir it too much. Only stir the chicken once or twice before removing from the skillet. Stir it too frequently, and the Maillard reaction won't have a chance to do its thing to brown and sear the meat.
- The sauce thickens as it cools. The honey sesame sauce will thicken a bit once you take it off the heat.
- Don't overcrowd the pan. When cooking the chicken, you may have to cook in batches to avoid overcrowding. If all the chicken pieces are touching, they're too close together and won't get crispy!
- Don't pile up the chicken. When you remove the chicken from the skillet, avoid piling it on top of each other on the plate or in a bowl. I've made this mistake - all the crispiness you worked so hard to get will disappear if the chicken sits in a clump!
Sam says
Can you substitute a different kind of vinegar
Chelsea says
Yes. You could use red wine vinegar or even white vinegar. It may affect the taste a bit, but only slightly!
Allison says
Hi! This looks SO GOOD! But is it possible to make it without tomato sauce? I’m allergic 🙁
Chelsea says
Hi, Allison! Unfortunately, I can't think of anything you could substitute for tomato sauce in this recipe.
Kristie says
I think it was just ok. I think one 8oz can of tomato sauce would have been enough. I think it tasted to much like tomato sauce. I didn’t want to add much more honey because of the sugar content.
Chelsea says
Hey Kristie! I appreciate your comment. Bummer that it wasn't up to par for you! I definitely prefer it pretty saucy and since I don't track my sugar intake, it doesn't bother me much to add extra honey if I need to make it sweeter. It's all up to the eater, I suppose!
Sarah says
Oh lastly, I didn't have access to fresh ginger so I used about a tablespoon of ground ginger.
So good 🙂
Sarah says
This was DELICIOUS! I did a few things a little different and I'll tell why. First, I was a bit hesitant because of the "I threw up comment" but then I thought about it and realized that maybe they just don't know how to cook or maybe they aren't great with improving a recipe to taste how they like it. With that being said, I decided to try this recipe despite the pretty rude comment with no explanation. Better yet, I cooked this for the first time and for my in-laws. It was a complete hit! My father-in-law went back for seconds. Now, they really aren't hard to cook for, but the first time I make a dish and I'm sharing it just gets me a little on edge hoping everyone will like it.
So for the changes I decided to use cornstarch instead of arrowroot flour. So I've cooked Paleo, Whole 30, gluten free, etc. So that's why I really liked what all was in this recipe in the first place. However, arrowroot flour can sometimes leave a sauce a little of what I call "clear gooey-ness" that really isn't appealing. Once I made this recipe I realized that probably wouldn't have happened here because of how it was being used. I mixed the cornstarch with just a tiny bit of flour. Honestly, it didn't even do anything so if I make the recipe again (and I will) I'll use the arrowroot flour.
As the chicken was cooking I started making the sauce. Here's where I did use some of my own chef skills (disclaimer: I'm not a real chef, but I know my way around a kitchen). I combined all ingredients as stated above and in the amounts as stated. Like all good chefs I tasted the sauce before I poured in on the chicken and I wasn't a fan of the tomato taste that was coming in strong. So, I added a bit more honey, tasted... a bit more honey, tasted... a bit more honey and ahhh yes just right! I also added a touch more coconut aminos, but not sure that it was much more than suggested or that it actually made a difference.
Next, I threw the broccoli in with the chicken as it finished up cooking then added the sauce and let it come to a boil and thicken.
I love a good cauliflower rice to be honest, but since I was cooking for the in-laws I made Basmati rice (long grain goodness). This was wonderful. The biggest change I made was just adding in more honey than what was suggested. I was really craving the honey in "Honey Sesame Chicken" that I just felt like the flavor needed to come out more!
Overall thank you so much for sharing this recipe and I'm really glad I stumbled upon your page!
Chelsea says
Thank you, Sarah! I appreciate it! Yes, I think I should add a note to increase the honey as you see fit - my husband and I just aren't fans of anything super sweet and we're both pretty sensitive to sweetness, so it's never a top priority to me. That said, I know that's not the case for most people! And you're totally right about the arrowroot - that clear gooeyness can be a real turnoff, but it's not a problem here. (Still, good to know that cornstarch works just as well!) Oh, and your addition of broccoli? What a great idea!
Anyway, thanks for giving the recipe a try and sending some feedback despite that other comment. I'm not one to delete comments unless it's very obviously spam, so unfortunately it's going to stay up!
Ashc says
This was awful. I threw up.
Chelsea says
I'm sorry to hear that, especially because it's one of our favorites around here! Can you tell me specifically what you didn't like about this recipe?
Karly says
Looks absolutely delicious!
Chelsea says
Thank you, Karly! 🙂