Sesame Chicken
Juicy crispy sesame chicken covered in a sweet sticky sauce, made without the top 9 allergens. What could be better than that?! Every time I made this recipe I’m reminded of a tradition my dad and I used to do. On Thursdays after school, my dad and I often stopped at a store to pickup freshly made sesame chicken and potato wedges, which we call Jo Jo’s. You can find my Jo Jo recipe here. It’s a fond tradition I often think about. When I get the craving for sesame chicken, I now turn to this beloved recipe.
History of Sesame Chicken
Whats fascinating about Chinese restaurants in America is that most of our favorite dishes are not actually items often served in restaurants in mainland China. Sesame chicken is one of those yummy items. It is believed that sesame chicken originated in China and then was brought to America by immigrants who then opened up Chinese-style restaurants. If you want to find out more about the history of sesame chicken, here is where I found my information!
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Ingredients & Substitutes
- raw chicken breasts or thighs. thawed & cut into 1-2 inch bites
- gf all-purpose flour. we used Namaste (Bob’s red mill is a great option too!)
- corn starch.
- baking powder.
- baking soda.
- water.
- white pepper. White pepper has a subtle more earthy flavor. It pairs nicely with this recipe. But black pepper will work in a pinch.
- salt.
- olive oil. Feel free to use any neutral high heat oil.
- minced garlic.
- honey. Agave syrup is another great option!
- coconut aminos.
- ketchup.
- brown sugar.
- apple cider vinegar. Really any vinegar will do.
- cornstarch. You can use potato or tapioca starch as well
- sesame seeds. If allergic to sesame seeds, I recommend white poppy seeds as an alternative. The flavor profile and size are similar.
- red pepper flakes. optional for spiciness
- long grain rice, cooked
How to Make Sesame Chicken
In a bowl, mix up the vegan wet batter ingredients till smooth.
In another bowl, Mix up your dry breading ingredients.
Dunk each of your chicken pieces into the wet batter. Then roll each chicken piece into the dry breading.
Heat 1 inch of oil in a deep frying pot to 350 degrees F.
In another pot add in all the sesame sauce ingredients & bring to a boil.
Carefully cook all the chicken bites for 3 mins per side in the hot oil. The chicken should be crispy and golden when done.
Place cooked chicken on a plate with a paper towel to minimize oiliness. Then add all the chicken to the pot with the sauce.
Continue to simmer and stir chicken till throughly coated in sauce. Sauce should thicken considerably.
Serve with rice!
Common Questions
- Can these be frozen for later? Yes! If you want to freeze these for later, cook the sauce and follow all instructions until you get to the frying stage. Instead of frying for 3 mins per side, 1 minute per side is all you’ll need. Then freeze the sauce and cooked chicken for later. When you want to eat it, simply heat the oil to 350 and cook for 3 mins per side. Then heat the sauce in a pan and simmer with the fried chicken till the sauce thickens. Serve with a side of rice.
- How to make sesame chicken extra crispy? Not only does the batter help the chicken to crisp up, but frying them twice will do the trick to make extra crispy sesame chicken. Simply dry off the chicken after frying as instructed & repeat. Then follow the remaining instructions as directed.
Other Favorite Allergy Friendly Dinner Recipes
Sesame Chicken (Gluten, Egg, Dairy, Soy, Nut Free)
Juicy crispy chicken with a sweet sticky sauce and made without the top 9 allergens. What could be better than that?! Every time I made this recipe I’m reminded of a tradition my dad and I used to do. On Thursdays after school, my dad and I often stopped at a store to pickup freshly made sesame chicken and potato wedges, which we call Jo Jo’s. You can find my Jo Jo recipe here. It’s a fond tradition I often think about. When I get the craving for sesame chicken, I now turn to this beloved recipe.
- Total Time: 30
- Yield: 6-8 1x
Ingredients
Meat:
- 2–2.5 pounds raw chicken thighs or breasts, thawed & cut into 1–2 inch bites
Vegan Wet Batter:
- 1/2 cup gf all-purpose flour, we again used Namaste (Bob’s red mill is a great option too!)
- 2/3 cup corn starch
- 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 cups chilled water
Dry Breading:
- 1 1/2 cups gf all-purpose gluten free flour, we used Namaste
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- 1 tsp salt
Sesame Sauce:
- 1 TB olive oil
- 2 tsp minced fresh garlic
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup coconut aminos
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 3/8 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 4 tsp cornstarch
- 3 TB sesame seeds, OR white poppy seeds (if you cannot have sesame)
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes, optional for spiciness
- Olive Oil (or any neutral tasting oil), for frying
- 1–2 cups long grain rice, cooked
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix up the vegan wet batter ingredients till smooth.
- In another bowl, Mix up your dry breading ingredients.
- Dunk each of your chicken pieces into the wet batter. Then roll each chicken piece into the dry breading.
- Heat 1 inch of oil in a deep frying pot to 350 degrees F.
- In another pot add in all the sesame sauce ingredients & bring to a boil.
- Carefully cook all the chicken bites for 3 mins per side in the hot oil. The chicken should be crispy and golden when done.
- Place cooked chicken on a plate with a paper towel to minimize oiliness. Then add all the chicken to the pot with the sauce.
- Continue to simmer and stir chicken till throughly coated in sauce. Sauce should thicken considerably.
- Serve with rice!
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 15