Almond butter chicken just got on my favourite paleo recipes list. The creamy sauce, chili, fresh-cut vegetables, cilantro and bean sprouts turn this chicken dish into a real star on your table. It makes a great and flavourful meal either for lunch, supper or for your lunch-box idea.
This dish is not one of those three ingredients meals. It’s the opposite because the list is quite long. However, all the ingredients are super easy to find. Probably, you can find everything in the supermarket next to you. And I am sure you have more than half of the needed ingredients already at home.
In case you don’t find anything, don’t panic. Don’t give up on this delicious almond butter chicken. Instead, simply try to find a substitution. If there is one thing I learned from cooking, it’s how to improvise or find another way.
Quite often I check out some paleo recipes (they are really great when you want to lose some weight and yet still eat everything) and of course I can’t find all the ingredients. And that happened for this recipe as well. Paleo Leap, the place of paleo recipes, used almond butter.
How to make almond butter?
I couldn’t find any almond butter near me. Consequently, I made some „researches“ and I made it myself. Yeah! That’s a real thing! Make it yourself and the dish will get even more special. How to make almond butter? Simply blend some almond flakes with a small amount of water in a food processor. You can also use whole almonds, but you have to soak them first. Well, that’s pretty much all.
Still, the almond butter is just one of the ingredients that roundup that yummy sauce flavour. Combine it with chili, honey, vinegar and soy sauce and you’ll get a rich and creamy sauce. You can really taste some Thai influence in it. You will love it!
Next, vegetables. Carrots, cabbage, zucchini and bell-pepper taste the best when fresh. Therefore, always buy fresh vegetables. It really makes a difference. They taste better and you will hear that lovely crunch when biting into them. Priceless!
What are zoodles?
Let’s talk about zoodles. What are zoodles? They are zucchini noodles. And they are so easy to make. All you need is a spiral cutter/slicer. Believe me, get one and vegetables will get much more interesting.
One last thing, to make this recipe delicious, you can either use chicken, turkey or (I believe) even pork would work well. Any meat you pick has to be pulled apart. Consequently, you can use leftovers as well. Meat pieces don’t always have to look nice.
Are you ready? Try this delicious dish, rich in flavours and textures. A real treat, which you can prepare in around 35 minutes time.
Ingredients for 2 portions of almond butter chicken:
- 350 g chicken (pulled apart)
- 120 g almond flakes
- 30 ml of soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp apple vinegar
- 1 Tbsp honey
- some chili flakes (depends on the taste)
- 3 tsp avocado oil (one is for the sauce)
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 carrots (shredded)
- 1 bell pepper (thinly sliced)
- 100-120 g cabbage (thinly sliced)
- 1 zucchini (zoodles)
- 100 g bean sprouts
- cilantro
Since I didn’t have any leftovers, I first prepared some chicken. I used chicken breasts. Simply prepare them in a pan until golden brown on the outside and white on the inside. Put them aside to cool down.
In the meantime, prepare all the vegetables and almond butter. Let’s start with the vegetables. Carefully shred the carrots (I used a grater), slice the garlic, cabbage and the bell pepper. In addition, make the zucchini noodles using a spiral cutter.
Place the almond flakes in a food processor, add a spoon of water and blend until smooth and well combined. Then, transfer the almond butter to a bowl and combine with soy sauce, melted avocado oil, honey, apple vinegar and chili flakes. Stir to combine well.
Prepare your favourite paleo meal
In a large frying pan melt some avocado oil, add garlic slices and cook until tender (around 2 minutes). Keep an eye on it, since garlic likes to burn quickly. And that doesn’t taste good at all. Then, add the cabbage, bell pepper and the carrots. Cook for about 4-5 minutes. During the cooking time, cover the pan with a lid.
While the vegetables are getting softer, you can pull apart the chicken. Once you are done, put it in the pan together with the vegetables. Give a quick stir and add the bean sprouts and zucchini noodles as well. Cook for an additional 4 minutes.
Last but not least, stir in the almond butter sauce and cook for 4 more minutes. Are you ready to taste it? Yes! Top the almond butter chicken with some fresh cilantro (you might squeeze some lime too) for even more flavour. Is it going to reach your list of favourite paleo recipes as well? Make it, taste it and let me know.
Enjoy!
PS:
If you like the recipe, if you make the recipe or if you have any new ideas how to improve or change it, let me know in the comments section below or alternatively share your photos and reactions with me on Instagram (@Passionspoon), Facebook or Twitter (@PassionSpoon1). Simply use the hashtag #passionspoonrecipes in your posts. I would love to see them! (wink)
