One-Pot Paleo Stir Fry Chicken

Several weeks ago, I planted new seedlings in my vegetable garden: cabbage, romaine lettuce, Brussels sprouts, and butternut squash. I’m hoping for a lovely autumn harvest! However, I didn’t have to plant anymore kale. My spring kale plants are still growing like crazy. And that means more kale recipes! Maybe this one will be the last one of the year. Maybe. 🙂 Kale is so delicious and healthy that I certainly wouldn’t mind eating it all year round.

Today, I’m using kale as one of the ingredients in this quick and easy chicken stir fry. I love stir fries. It’s so fun to come up with creative combinations and toss everything together in a wok or skillet. And by only using one pot, clean up becomes so effortless.

Along with the dark green kale, I added strips of chicken, bite size broccoli florets, and a splash of orange: sweet potatoes! I love how they bring a taste of autumn to the dish.

When buying sweet potatoes, I always buy organic as potatoes are listed as one of the dirty dozen, frequently found to be contaminated with toxic insecticides. Organic potatoes are naturally gluten free and acceptable on a paleo diet. Of course, if you’re trying to watch your waistline, you may not want to eat potatoes as they are a high glycemic index food. After a good workout, though, there is no harm in a tasty potato. Read more here.

Those four ingredients are the heart of this recipe but what really takes this stir fry to the next level is the beautiful white wine lemon butter sauce. So flavorful. So perfect.

Without further ado, let’s jump right into how to make this healthy dinner.

First, you’re going to set the chicken to marinate in wine and garlic. I throw in a bay leaf too. Let the chicken marinate for 15 minutes while prepping the veggies.

Peel the sweet potatoes, cut them up into bite size pieces, and steam them for about 20 minutes until they are soft when pierced with a fork. Meanwhile wash and cut the broccoli into bite size pieces. Wash the kale leaves, tear them from the stems, wash again, and set aside.

In a large frying pan or wok, heat avocado oil over a medium heat, but not smoking. I have been enjoying frying in avocado oil lately. Refined avocado oil is highly nutritious and loaded with antioxidants. Read all about its health benefits here. It is very heat stable with one of the highest smoke points making it one of the best possible oils for stir frying. I find that I don’t need to have a high flame. Just keep the flame on medium and make sure the oil doesn’t start to smoke.

Add broccoli and cook, stirring continuously until tender, about 5 minutes. Then add your kale, toss and cook for one more minute. Then remove your vegetables and set aside.

Now onto the chicken. Take the chicken out of the marinade. We’ll use the marinade for the sauce a little later.

Heat one more tablespoon of oil in your wok. Cook and stir chicken, about 2 minutes per side. Bite-size pieces of chicken cook very quickly. Remove the cooked chicken and set aside.

Return the broccoli and kale and the reserved marinade to the wok and bring to a boil. Then turn down to simmer and let the alcohol from the wine cook off. Return the chicken, stir and cook for one minute to blend. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Then add the steamed sweet potatoes, toss, and heat through.

With a slotted spoon, remove the chicken and vegetables to your serving bowl.

Finally, for the sauce, stir two tablespoons of tapioca flour into two tablespoons of water in a small bowl. Add this to the wok and stir until combined. Then add two tablespoons of butter and lemon juice and whisk vigorously while simmering until thickened, about 1 minute. (If you find that the tapioca gets a little gooey, just add a little water and stir until it thins out to a gravy-like consistency). Taste and adjust seasonings if you prefer, perhaps a little more salt or more lemon depending upon your preference. Pour the sauce over your stir fry.

And that’s it! This stir fry chicken with kale, broccoli and sweet potatoes is a quick and healthy meal to enjoy during these cool September days. I just love this time of year. The air is crisp and the weather here in the Northeast is gorgeous. Soon the leaves will be changing to show off their spectacular colors. I think you’re going to love this stir fry with its colors of a fresh autumn day. Enjoy!

5.0 from 1 reviews

One-Pot Paleo Stir Fry Chicken

 

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Cook time

30 mins

Total time

30 mins

 

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 2 lbs. chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces
• 1½ cups white wine
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1 bay leaf
• 2-3 organic sweet potatoes
• ½ lb. broccoli florets
• 1 cup packed of kale
• 3 tablespoons avocado oil
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 tablespoons tapioca flour
• 2 tablespoons water
• ⅓ cup fresh lemon juice (from about 2 lemons)
• 2 tablespoons butter

Instructions

1. For Marinate: Place chicken in a shallow baking dish with wine, garlic and a bay leaf for 15 minutes.
2. Prep vegetables: Peel the sweet potatoes, cut them up into bite size pieces and steam them about 20 minutes until they are soft when pierced with a fork.
3. Meanwhile wash and cut the broccoli into bite size pieces. Wash the kale leaves, tear them from the stems, wash again, and set aside.
4. Stir fry: In a large frying pan or wok, heat 2 tablespoons of avocado oil over a medium heat, but not smoking. Add, garlic and broccoli, season with salt and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.Stir constantly to be sure the broccoli does not burn.
5. Add kale, toss and cook for one more minute. Remove vegetables and set aside.
6. Remove chicken from marinade, reserving marinade.
7. Heat 1 more tablespoon of oil in wok. Cook and stir chicken, about 2 minutes per side. Bite-size pieces of chicken cook very quickly. Remove to a dish and set aside.
8. Return broccoli and kale and reserved marinade and bring to a boil. Then turn down to simmer. Return the chicken, stir and cook for one minute to blend. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
9. Add the steamed sweet potatoes, toss, heat through.
10. Next, remove chicken and vegetables to a serving dish with a slotted spoon
11. For Sauce:. Dissolve 2 tablespoons of tapioca flour into 2 tablespoons of water in a small bowl.
12. Then stir into wine sauce in your wok. Add 2 tablespoons of butter and lemon juice and whisk vigorously. until thickened about 1 minute. Pour sauce over chicken.
13. Serve immediately.

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