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This Whole30 Chicken and Broccoli is a staple in our house!
One of my all-time favorite dishes growing up was Chicken and Broccoli from a Chinese restaurant in McKinney, Texas– China Sun. It was the closest Chinese restaurant to the small town I grew up in and my closest friends and I would drive there at least once a week to pig out on big platters of chicken and broccoli with a side of wonton soup. I loved those teenage “road trips” (it was about 30 minutes away) with my best friends from home: Ashley, Lindy, and Beth. I have so many fond memories of Ashley, Lindy, and I eating our platters of chicken and broccoli!
Over the years, I’ve made variations of the classic American Chinese dish. But I’ve finally gotten a great Whole30 rendition that I just know that you and your families will love. My kiddos love this Chinese Chicken and Broccoli stir-fry as much as my husband and I do, making it a great go to on any weeknight! It’s simple to make, and full of flavor, with a rich and flavorful brown sauce you’ll want to lick off the plate!
If you like this chicken stir fry, try this Chicken and Kimchi Stir Fry or Chicken and Mushroom Stir Fry.
Chicken and Broccoli
Ingredients
For the Chicken:
- 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp white pepper (black pepper is okay)
- 1 tbsp coconut aminos
- 1 tsp tapioca flour
For the Sauce:
- 3 tsp tapioca flour
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 1/4 cup coconut aminos (I like Big Tree Farm brand)
- 1 tsp fish sauce (I use Red Boat brand)
- 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp finely grated ginger
For the Stir-Fry:
- 2 tbsp avocado oil, or more as needed
- 6 cups broccoli, cut into florets
Instructions
Prepare the Chicken:
- Place chicken in a single layer across a cutting board and cover with wax paper. Using a meat mallet or the bottom of a skillet, pound the chicken until it is a uniform 1/2 inch thickness. Then, cut chicken into 1/2 inch sized cubes.
- Place the cubed chicken in a large bowl with the avocado oil, kosher salt, white pepper, coconut aminos and tapioca. Toss until well combined. Set aside.
Make the Sauce:
- In a small bowl, combine all of the "for the sauce" ingredients and whisk until well combined and the tapioca has dissolved in the mixture. Set aside.
Make the Stir Fry:
- Heat oil in a large, non-stick skillet or wok over medium-high heat. When hot and in batches so as to be careful not to overcrowd the pan, cook the chicken until golden brown on both sides and cooked through, 2-3 minutes per side. Transfer cooked chicken to a plate and continue, adding oil if your skillet seems dry as needed, until all the chicken is browned and cooked through.
- In the same skillet (still over medium-high heat), add the broccoli florets and 1/4 cup of water to the skillet. Cook, stirring, until the water has completely evaporated, about 2 minutes.
- Add the sauce to the skillet with the broccoli and cook, stirring, until the sauce just begins to thicken, about 2 minutes.
- Add the chicken and any of it's juices back into the skillet with the broccoli and sauce. Simmer, stirring, until the sauce is thick and coats the chicken evenly, about 2 to 4 more minutes.
- Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
SO good and so easy!! I made it with frozen broccoli which made it even easier. Great week night dinner because it’s quick and super simple!
Easy and delicious! So easy for a weeknight! I added some red paper flakes to give it a bit of a kick.
Gotta have red pepper flakes! Great addition, thank you for the comment!
My fiancé replied with “this is the best stir fry sauce you’ve made” – thanks for creating the best flavor combos, you’re my go-to!! 😋
Love to hear it!
How necessary would you say the sesame oil and fish sauce are?? I have all other ingredients and want to make it but I don’t want it to be ruined if I leave one or both out!
The Fish Sauce adds a wonderfuly and salty umami flavor that may be missed if you just use the coconut aminos. or i’d sub in soy sauce instead of the coconut aminos if you don’t have the fish sauce.
The sesame oil isn’t essential but does add a depth of flavor and nuttiness!
Can I substitute or leave it the fish oil?
You can omit.
One of our go tos!
Our family loves this recipe! We double it so we can eat it for a few meals. I love that it tastes amazing like from a restaurant but it’s also made with nourishing ingredients. Thanks for this recipe!!
This was sooooo good. Better than takeout! I substituted Liquid Aminos for the Coconut Aminos, Cornstarch for the tapioca flour, and olive oil instead of avocado oil. The only downfall was it was WAY too salty for our taste. I would maybe reduce the amount of salt on the chicken and even slightly reduce the aminos or fish sauce? It tasted so good so we kept eating it but we were chugging water throughout the meal.
Hi!! Liquid aminos are *so much* more salty than coconut aminos– which is why you had that issue!
We couldn’t believe this was Whole30! We made it two weeks in a row and double the recipe both times.
We used a cast iron wok both times and enough fond developed while browning the chicken that I didn’t need to use chicken broth. I actually think it would’ve been a little overpowering to have chicken broth in addition to the fond.
Thanks for making our Whole30 possible, Alex! Your recipes have been on constant rotation since we started.
Hi! This looks delish! We aren’t on a special diet. Can we use regular flour?
Cornstarch works here, not regular flour!
SO GOOD! I am making 3 recipes of this for some ladies I’m having for dinner. Could I make this ahead of time and freeze it and then thaw and warm for serving that evening? My family enjoys many many many of your recipes.
I don’t think that this recipe would freeze well! unfortunately the arrowroot or tapioca wouldn’t hold up in the freezer well in this stir fry.
I know this is really late but I can report that the sauce at least holds well in the fridge. We had some leftover from doubling the recipe and it was delicious on another occasion. It also made dining at someone else’s house really easy. The host made a stir fry, held a portion aside for us before saucing, and we just used the remaining sauce in a separate pan.