This two-part recipe puts a tropical twist on a cut of meat that could otherwise be bland and boring (skinless chicken breast), proving that with a great recipe, it’s possible to make any cut shine.
The first step is to make the pineapple sauce. If you can get a Paleo-friendly pineapple sauce at the store, you can save some time, but finding one might be a challenge because most commercial sauces are loaded with sugar and preservatives.
Plus, store-bought sauces don’t give you the option of adjusting them exactly to your liking: you can lower the heat of this sauce by taking out some or all of the chili peppers if you like it a little less spicy.
Even making the sauce by hand, you can still save yourself some prep time by making the sauce the night before and letting it age; the flavor gets even better, and the preparation of the actual recipe becomes much shorter with the sauce already made.
The instructions given here make 4 cups of the sauce, but you only need 1 cup for the recipe, so you can save some for another night when you might need to whip up a quick dinner. For even more variety, it would also be good over pork, with the same combination of vegetables.
This quick stir fry is a sure kid-pleaser recipe; the pineapple makes it sweet without needing to use any sugar, and the onions and green peppers add a pleasant crunch.
For a Paleo version of Chinese takeout, try it over some cauliflower “rice” and seize the opportunity to practice your chopstick skills with no MSG attached.
Chicken pineapple stir-fry recipe
SERVES: 4 PREP: 15-30 min COOK: 20-45 min
Ingredients
- 1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into chunks;
- 1 large green bell pepper, chopped;
- 1 large onion, chopped;
- 1 lb pineapples cubes;
- 2 tbsp. cooking fat;
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper;
Ingredients for the spicy pineapple sauce (yields 4 cups)
- 1 lb pineapples cubes;
- 1 small onion, cubed;
- 1 carrot, roughly chopped;
- 2 garlic cloves;
- The zest and juice of 1 lime;
- ½ oz. fresh ginger, roughly chopped;
- ½ tsp. ground ginger;
- ½ tsp. cumin;
- ¼ tsp. cinnamon;
- ¼ cup fresh pineapple juice;
- ½ cup of white wine vinegar;
- 4 chili peppers (optional);
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper;
Preparation
- Place all the ingredients for the sauce in a food processor, except for the white wine vinegar, and process until you get a smooth sauce.
- Add the sauce to a pot with the vinegar and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes.
- Pour the sauce into bottles or glass jars, and place in a water bath of simmering water for 10 minutes.
- In a skillet placed over medium-high heat, preheat the cooking fat. Then add the chicken cubes and cook for 10 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink.
- Remove the chicken from the skillet and set aside. Add the pineapple cubes, the green bell peppers, and the onions. Cook for 5 minutes, just enough so the vegetables are still nice and crisp.
- Add the pineapple sauce to the mixture and bring it to a boil. Simmer for about 4 minutes.
- Bring the chicken back to the skillet, combine it all together and cook for another 3 minutes, making sure everything is warm.
- If you find the sauce a bit too spicy, you can always add some pineapple juice.
- Season to taste and serve.
📖 Recipe
Chicken pineapple stir-fry recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb. skinless boneless chicken breast, cut into chunks
- 1 large green bell pepper chopped
- 1 large onion chopped
- 1 lb pineapples cubes
- 2 tbsp. cooking fat
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Ingredients for the spicy pineapple sauce (yields 4 cups)
- 1 lb pineapples cubes
- 1 small onion cubed
- 1 carrot roughly chopped
- 2 garlic cloves
- The zest and juice of 1 lime
- ½ oz. fresh ginger roughly chopped
- ½ tsp. ground ginger
- ½ tsp. cumin
- ¼ tsp. cinnamon
- ¼ cup fresh pineapple juice
- ½ cup of white wine vinegar
- 4 chili peppers optional
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients for the sauce in a food processor, except for the white wine vinegar, and process until you get a smooth sauce.1 lb pineapples cubes, 1 small onion, 1 carrot, 2 garlic cloves, The zest and juice of 1 lime, ½ tsp. ground ginger, ½ tsp. cumin, ¼ tsp. cinnamon, ¼ cup fresh pineapple juice, ½ cup of white wine vinegar, 4 chili peppers, Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Add the sauce to a pot with the vinegar and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes.
- Pour the sauce into bottles or glass jars, and place in a water bath of simmering water for 10 minutes.
- In a skillet placed over medium-high heat, preheat the cooking fat. Then add the chicken cubes and cook for 10 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink.1 lb. skinless, 2 tbsp. cooking fat
- Remove the chicken from the skillet and set aside. Add the pineapple cubes, the green bell peppers, and the onions. Cook for 5 minutes, just enough so the vegetables are still nice and crisp.1 large green bell pepper, 1 large onion, 1 lb pineapples cubes, ½ oz. fresh ginger, Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Add the pineapple sauce to the mixture and bring it to a boil. Simmer for about 4 minutes.
- Bring the chicken back to the skillet, combine it all together and cook for another 3 minutes, making sure everything is warm.
- If you find the sauce a bit too spicy, you can always add some pineapple juice.
- Season to taste and serve.
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