It was a rainy day for us here in Arizona recently. When that happens, we all hunker down and act like a giant snowstorm just whopped us a good one…
Why? Because for us desert-dwellers in the usually bone-dry southwest, a little rain suddenly becomes “extreme weather.”
I’m originally from the Pacific Northwest, so when I see news bulletins showing raindrops on a windshield or a puddle on the freeway, it makes me laugh. Especially because I know half of the people living here are from the Midwest. :)
Anyway, the fun part of a rainy day is I get to light my candles and enjoy the grey skies for a change.
When it rolled around to dinnertime, I wanted to make something quick but limited to what we had on hand — after all, we wouldn’t want to risk venturing outside into the “extreme weather!”
As paleo peeps, we almost always have some kind of fresh veggies and meat in the fridge. [av_sidebar widget_area=’Lockerdome’ av_uid=’av-24nfck’]
I took inventory and found some leftover rotisserie chicken and veggies…the perfect ingredients for an impromptu stir-fry! (You can easily make this recipe with fresh cubed chicken too.)
This awesome meal is based on a recipe I used to make all the time before going paleo.
I changed up some of the ingredients to abide by the paleo rules (no soy sauce, etc.) and I think it turned out great!
I was going to serve it over cauliflower rice, but it was already loaded with so many veggies and we chowed it down so fast, we never had a chance to miss the caulirice!
And don’t worry about needing a wok to make this stir-fry. We pulled out a large, deep frying pan and it worked great.
Once you have everything chopped up, it’ll only take you 10 minutes or so to whip this paleo stir-fry together. Try it. It’s so yummy – rain or shine.
Ingredients
- 2 cups of chicken, cubed
- 2 cups of broccoli florets
- 1 cup of carrots, sliced thin
- 1 red pepper, sliced thin
- 1 can of water chestnuts
- About 1/4 cup of almonds, sliced or slivers
- Coconut oil (for your wok or saucepan)
- 6 tbs of coconut aminos
- 4 tbs freshly squeezed orange juice
- 1 tsp of rice vinegar
- 2 tbs of coconut sugar (or substitute with 2 tbs of raw honey if you prefer)
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tbs of arrowroot powder
- 1/2 tsp of black pepper
- 1/2 tsp or garlic powder
- 1 tsp of ginger, ground
- 1 tsp of red pepper flakes (use more or less according to your personal taste)
- 1 tsp of salt
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix aminos, orange juice, rice vinegar, coconut sugar, sesame oil, salt, red pepper flakes, garlic, ginger and arrowroot
- Place about two tablespoons of coconut oil in a saucepan over medium high heat (you can test the proper temperature by placing a drop of water in the pan - if it dances around, the heat is high enough)
- Place chicken cubes in the pan to brown - season with some seasoning salt and a little pepper for now
- Cook chicken until browned and just done – don't overcook. (If you're using fresh chicken, check a piece to make sure it's cooked through) Remove chicken from pan and set aside for now.
- Take your broccoli and carrots and place them in a microwave safe bowl with a tablespoon of water. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave for 1 minute (You just want to steam the veggies, NOT cook them thoroughly). Remove from microwave.
- Return your sauce pan to medium high heat with a couple of tablespoons of coconut oil, add the cooked chicken, broccoli, carrots, water chestnuts, and peppers along with the stir-fry sauce you prepared.
- Cook for 2-3 minutes or until the veggies are just tender - don't overcook
- Serve over cauliflower rice if desired, and sprinkle with almond slivers