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Quick, easy, and insanely delicious 20-minute mongolian chicken! Inspired by the flavors in your favorite dish from your local Chinese restaurant – comes together in less time than it’d take you to order takeout.

overhead image of mongolian chicken on a plate over cauliflower rice

What You’ll Need To Make Mongolian Chicken

Chicken Breast – Thinly slice two large, boneless and skinless chicken breasts against the grain. Once sliced, it’s ready to use in this recipe! And for extra crispy chicken pieces, we start by coating them in corn starch before cooking. However, if you don’t have any corn starch, you can use arrowroot starch or tapioca starch in its place. Or, you can skip this step altogether!

Scallions – Slice three whole scallions (white and green part) however large or small you’d like. I typically slice mine in 2-inch pieces, since I love biting into large pieces of sautéed scallions in my mongolian chicken.

Ginger – If using fresh, whole ginger, slice off a 1-inch knob of ginger and remove the skin. Then, run your piece of ginger along a microplane grater until its finely grated. Or, to save time, I recommend buying a jar of minced ginger, and using that in this recipe instead!

Soy Sauce – Soy sauce is the classic addition to this Chinese-inspired recipe. However, if gluten-free, use tamari in place of the soy sauce. Or, for a slightly healthier version, use reduced sodium soy sauce instead!

close-up image of mongolian chicken in a skillet

Adjust This Recipe To Your Dietary Needs

Make it Paleo: Turn this into an easy paleo dinner recipe by replacing the corn starch with tapioca starch, and using coconut aminos in place of the soy sauce. Then, serve your cooked chicken over cauliflower rice – yum.

Make it Gluten-Free: For gluten-free mongolian chicken, make sure the corn starch you use is entirely gluten-free, and replace the soy sauce with an equal amount of tamari. Tamari is the gluten-free equivalent to soy sauce, and tastes exactly the same!

overhead image of mongolian chicken in a skillet.

Interested In More Chicken Recipes? Try These!

20-Minute Mongolian Chicken

0 from 0 votes
Recipe by Samantha Course: MainCuisine: ChineseDifficulty: Easy
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

5

minutes
Cooking time

15

minutes
Total time

20

minutes

Quick, easy, and insanely delicious 20-minute mongolian chicken! Inspired by the flavors in your favorite dish from your local Chinese restaurant – comes together in less time than it’d take you to order takeout.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 pounds chicken breast, thinly sliced

  • salt, to taste

  • 1/4 cup corn starch, or arrowroot starch

  • 3 tablespoons avocado oil

  • 3 scallions, sliced

  • 2 garlic cloves, minced

  • 1-inch piece fresh ginger, grated

  • 1 tablespoon corn starch

  • 1/2 cup vegetable broth

  • 1/4 cup soy sauce, or tamari if gluten-free

Directions

  • Season chicken breast with salt, then toss in corn starch to coat.
  • Heat avocado oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, once hot add in the chicken – cook until golden brown and cooked through. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside.
  • Lower heat to medium and add in the garlic, ginger, and scallions. Cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
  • Whisk the corn starch into the vegetable broth, then pour into the skillet along with the soy sauce. Reduce heat to low and simmer until sauce has thickened.
  • Once thick, add chicken back into the skillet and toss in sauce, then serve.

Recipe Video

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This kung pao tofu will quickly become one of your favorite dinner recipes! One pan and 15 minutes is all you need for this intensely flavorful meal. This kung pao tofu is also entirely vegan, plant-based, and gluten-free!

kung pao tofu on a plate over rice, with sesame seeds on top

What You’ll Need

Extra Firm Tofu – Extra firm tofu is the key to getting it super crispy! It will hold its shapes once cut and cooked, forming these little golden brown nuggets of perfection. Tofu is also the perfect blank canvas to really any recipe! It has very little flavor on its own, but absorbs all the flavors it’s paired with. The tofu in this recipe soaks up all of our delicious kung pao sauce, making it just incredible!

Red and Green Bell Peppers – Two bell peppers give this dish incredible color and brightness! Start by removing the core and any seeds from each pepper. Then, chop them into similarly-sized pieces. Stir fry the bell peppers for only a couple of minutes in the fourth step of this recipe. The goal is to get them tender, while still maintaining their bite.

Unsalted Cashews or Peanuts – You’ll find either cashews or peanuts in most kung pao recipes. They, too, give this overall dish the perfect crunchy texture that pairs beautifully with our smooth and tangy sauce. However, if you don’t like nuts, you can simply leave them out of your kung pao tofu.

kung pao tofu in a pan

Top Tips

  • Oil your pan well before frying up the tofu. If not enough oil is used, your tofu might stick to the pan – losing that delicious outer, crisp coating!
  • For an even saucier vegetable stir fry, double the sauce recipe! This kung pao tofu sauce is seriously so good, you’ll practically want to drink it. So don’t skimp on the sauce, and make as much as you’d like!
  • Feel free to turn this into a kung pao chicken recipe instead! To do this, simply replace the tofu with 2-inch cubes of chicken and cook them in the second step until fully cooked through. Then, use your chicken just as you would the tofu in the remainder of the recipe.
close-up image of kung pao tofu on a plate over rice

Adjust This Recipe To Your Dietary Needs

  • Make it Gluten-Free: To ensure this recipe is completely gluten-free, use tamari instead of soy sauce. Tamari is the gluten-free equivalent to soy sauce and tastes exactly the same!
  • Make it Nut-Free: For a nut-free version, simple leave out the cashews or peanuts in this recipe. But if you’d still like that nutty flavor, you can add in a couple tablespoons of sesame seeds instead.

One-Pan Kung Pao Tofu

5 from 3 votes
Recipe by Samantha Course: MainDifficulty: Easy
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

5

minutes
Cooking time

10

minutes
Total time

15

minutes

This kung pao tofu will quickly become one of your favorite dinner recipes! One pan and 15 minutes is all you need for this intensely flavorful meal. This kung pao tofu is also entirely vegan, plant-based, and gluten-free!

Ingredients

  • For the tofu:
  • 14 ounces extra firm tofu, cut into cubes

  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch

  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil or avocado oil

  • For the veggies:
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced

  • 2-inch piece ginger, grated

  • 3 scallions, sliced (white and green parts separated)

  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped

  • 1 green bell pepper, chopped

  • 1 cup raw unsalted cashews or peanuts

  • For the sauce:
  • 1/4 cup vegetable broth

  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce, use Tamari for gluten-free

  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar, or white wine vinegar

  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar

  • 2 teaspoons corn starch

  • 1 teaspoon sriracha

  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil

Directions

  • Place cubed tofu in a bowl with cornstarch and toss to evenly coat.
  • Heat sesame oil in a large pan over medium-high heat, then fry tofu in a single layer for 2-3 minutes per side or until golden brown. Remove cooked tofu and set aside.
  • Add garlic, ginger, and white parts of scallions to pan and cook for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant.
  • Add in red and green bell peppers, sauté for 2-3 minutes then place tofu back into pan along with green parts of scallions and cashews or peanuts.
  • Whisk together all sauce ingredients in a bowl, then pour into pan and reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer until sauce has thickened then serve over rice.

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For a quick, easy, and delicious dinner – make these perfect bang bang shrimp bowls! Crispy cooked shrimp is tossed in a spicy, tangy bang bang sauce, then spooned over rice and a variety of veggies. Whip together this restaurant-quality meal in under 15 minutes, I promise you won’t regret it!

bang bang shrimp bowl with shrimp, cucumber, edamame, and pickled red onion

What You’ll Need To Make This Recipe

Shrimp – Do yourself a favor and purchase peeled and deveined shrimp for this recipe. Then, if the tails haven’t already been removed, go ahead and remove them before cooking the shrimp. If left one, the shrimp tails are a nightmare to remove once covered in bang bang sauce. So, make life a little easier and strip those shrimp before cooking!

Harissa Paste – Harissa is chili paste commonly used in Middle Eastern cooking. It’s delightfully spicy and loaded with delicious flavor. You should be able to find harissa paste at your local grocery store in either the spice aisle or ethnic food aisle. Though if you can’t find harissa paste available for purchase, there are a few homemade recipes floating around on the internet, such as this one.

Soy Sauce or Coconut Aminos – A touch of soy sauce adds a bit of tang to our bang bang shrimp sauce. It’s the perfect addition to help round out the savory flavors! Though if you’re paleo or currently on Whole30, feel free to use coconut aminos in place of the soy sauce in this recipe. It’ll provide that same irresistible briny flavor!

Cooked Rice – Use whatever kind of rice you’d like! White rice, brown rice, cauliflower rice… you get the idea. The use of cauliflower rice makes for a great low-carb, paleo, and Whole30 option!

Top Tips

  • Get the avocado oil in your skillet hot before adding in the shrimp. We want a nice, golden brown and crispy crust on our shrimp, and can only achieve this by cooking them in very hot oil. And thanks to the use of high heat, the shrimp will only take a few minutes per side to cook!
  • You can make this bang bang shrimp recipe in the air fryer if you’d like! To do this, simply add your shrimp to an air fryer basket, drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt, then cook at 400° Fahrenheit for 5 minutes. Once shrimp is fully cooked, toss in the bang bang sauce and continue with the recipe as normal.
  • Ditch the bowls and serve this easy seafood dish however you’d like! Poke each shrimp with a toothpick to serve as a delicious appetizer. Or, place in lettuce wraps for super healthy bang bang shrimp tacos!

Adjust This Recipe To Your Dietary Needs

Make it Paleo/Whole30 – For a paleo or Whole30 meal, be sure to use compliant mayo, coconut aminos instead of soy sauce, and cauliflower rice in place of white or brown rice.

Make it Gluten-Free – The only ingredient in this dish which contains trace amounts of gluten is the soy sauce. Therefore, use tamari in place of the soy sauce to make this recipe gluten-free, I promise you won’t be able to taste the difference!

Make it Vegan – Fry up some cubed tofu in a bit of avocado oil (similar to how you would the shrimp) then use a vegan mayo for your sauce. Once the tofu’s crispy, add it to your sauce and serve it over bowls of rice and veggies!

Bang Bang Shrimp Bowls

5 from 1 vote
Recipe by Samantha Course: Main, AppetizersDifficulty: Easy
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

5

minutes
Cooking time

10

minutes
Total time

15

minutes

For a quick, easy, and delicious dinner – make these perfect bang bang shrimp bowls! Crispy cooked shrimp is tossed in a spicy, tangy bang bang sauce, then spooned over rice and a variety of veggies. Whip together this restaurant-quality meal in under 15 minutes, I promise you won’t regret it!

Ingredients

  • For the shrimp:
  • 1 pound peeled and deveined shrimp, tails removed

  • 1 tablespoon avocado oil, or any neutral vegetable oil

  • pinch of salt

  • For the bang bang sauce:
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise

  • 1 tablespoon harissa paste

  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce or coconut aminos

  • 1 teaspoon lime juice

  • For the bowls:
  • Cooked white or brown rice

  • Scallions, chopped

  • Pickled veggies

  • Sesame seeds

  • Cucumber, thinly sliced

  • Edamame

Directions

  • Heat avocado oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Pat shrimp dry with a paper towel, season with a pinch of salt, then place in skillet and cook about 3-4 minutes per side or until opaque and slightly crispy.
  • Mix together all bang bang sauce ingredients in a large bowl. Add cooked shrimp to bowl and toss to coat in sauce.
  • Place bang bang shrimp over bowls of rice, and finish off with whatever other toppings you’d like.

Recipe Video

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More 30 Minute Dinner Recipes

Miso-Glazed Salmon with Coconut Rice is a delicious gluten-free seafood dish filled with healthy nutrients and packed with savory flavors. You’ll be amazed at how easy and quick it is to make (under 30 minutes)!

Miso-Glazed Salmon with Coconut Rice

MAIN INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO MAKE Miso-Glazed Salmon with Coconut Rice

  • Miso Paste

  • Soy Sauce – Use tamari for gluten-free.

  • Rice Vinegar

  • Honey

  • Salmon Fillets – With the skin on.

  • Rice – Jasmine or long grain white rice.

  • Coconut Milk

  • Water – Plain or coconut water.

  • Salt

Tips on Making Miso-Glazed Salmon with Coconut Rice

  • The Miso Glaze – To make the glaze you’ll need miso paste, some soy sauce, honey and a bit of rice vinegar. Miso paste (fermented soy bean paste) is very savory and salty. The thing to keep in mind here is that miso paste comes in all sorts of colors (white, yellow, red). Generally, the darker the paste, the stronger the flavor, so choose based on your taste preferences.

  • Rice Vinegar – You can use lemon juice, lime juice, or white vinegar in place of the rice wine vinegar in this recipe.

  • Make it Paleo – For paleo, use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce, and omit the honey since coconut aminos contain a bit of sweetness.

Miso-Glazed Salmon with Coconut Rice

4 from 4 votes
Recipe by Samantha Course: MainCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

20

minutes
Cooking time

25

minutes
Total time

45

minutes

Miso-Glazed Salmon with Coconut Rice is a delicious gluten-free seafood dish filled with healthy nutrients and packed with savory flavors. You’ll be amazed at how easy and quick it is to make (under 30 minutes)!

Ingredients

  • For the Miso Salmon:
  • 2 Tablespoons Miso Paste

  • 2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce (or tamari)

  • 1 Tablespoon Rice Vinegar

  • 1 Tablespoon Honey

  • 4 Whole Salmon Fillets (Skin-On)

  • For the Coconut Rice:
  • 2 Cups Jasmine or Long Grain White Rice

  • 1 Can Coconut Milk

  • 1 1/4th Cups Coconut Water or Plain Water

  • 1 Pinch Salt

Directions

  • Mix together the miso paste, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and honey in a small bowl.
  • Pat salmon dry with a paper towel, place on a baking sheet then pour miso mixture over top of each fillet. Let salmon marinate at room temperature for 20 minutes.
  • Place salmon in the oven at high broil for for 4-5 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the salmon reads 125° Fahrenheit.
  • Make the coconut rice by adding all ingredients to a saucepan over medium heat, bring to a boil before reducing to a gentle simmer and covering with lid. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until all liquid has been absorbed, remove from heat and fluff rice with a fork before serving.

Recipe Video

Notes

  • Add in cooked veggies for an even healthier meal!
  • Storage: Properly stored, cooked salmon will last for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. Use an airtight container.
  • To Reheat: Put the fish on a rimmed baking sheet and warm it a 275°F oven for about 15 minutes, until it reaches an internal temperature of 125°F to 130°F. 

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MORE HEALTHY RECIPES

If your only experience with fried rice is Chinese take-out, you’ll love this fresher-tasting, gluten-free version.

One of my favorite parts of hibachi is the fried rice! Whether you want it as a full meal or a side dish, you can’t go wrong with this hibachi fried rice recipe. Made with gluten-free soy sauce, and full of good-for-you vegetables, it is quick and easy to make, and is sure to be a big hit.

What You Need To Make Hibachi Fried Rice

  • Rice – Jasmine, calrose, short-grain rice, and long-grain rice are some of my favs to use when cooking hibachi fried rice. 
  • Vegetables – I’ve used onions, corn and carrots, but you can also add in other veggies of your choice. If all you have is a bag of frozen vegetables, that’ll work just fine!
  • Grated Ginger – Just two teaspoons of fresh grated ginger goes a long way in making this hibachi fried rice. The next time you’re at the store, pick up a knob of fresh ginger in the produce section. Once home, store it in the freezer to make it last longer.
  • Soy Sauce & Toasted Sesame Oil – Along with the delicious taste, soy sauce also adds a nice brown color in the recipe.  Although optional, the toasted sesame oil brings tons of nutty flavor to this hibachi fried rice.
  • Avocado oil – When compared to traditional olive oil used in a lot of recipes, avocado oil will perform better when heated to high temperatures.

Adjust This Hibachi Fried Rice Recipe To Your Diet

  • Make it Vegan: Use vegan butter and omit the egg.
  • Make it Grain-Free: Substitute the rice for some cauliflower rice (the dish won’t get as crispy and “fried,” but will still taste delicious!)
  • Make it Paleo: Use cauliflower rice, coconut aminos instead of soy sauce, and avocado oil instead of butter.

Tips For Making Hibachi Fried Rice

  • Use rice you’ve made ahead of time instead of freshly cooked rice. Freshly cooked rice tends to clump together and does not crisp up as easily.
  • For more protein, add some cooked shrimp or cubes of tofu!
  • Consider varying the veggies like snow peas, broccoli florets and chopped zucchini for delicious additions.

Hibachi Fried Rice Recipe (Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Vegan Option)

3 from 5 votes
Recipe by Samantha Course: Main, SidesCuisine: AsianDifficulty: Easy
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

5

minutes
Cooking time

10

minutes
Total time

15

minutes

One of my favorite parts of hibachi is the fried rice! Whether you want it as a full meal or a side dish, you can’t go wrong with this hibachi fried rice recipe. Made with gluten-free soy sauce, ginger and full of good-for-you vegetables, it is quick and easy to make, and is sure to be a big hit.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons avocado oil

  • ½ onion, chopped

  • 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables

  • 2 teaspoons grated ginger

  • 2 eggs, whisked

  • 2 tablespoons butter, I used non-dairy butter

  • 3 cups cooked rice, cooled

  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce

  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil, optional

Directions

  • Heat avocado oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, add in onion, frozen vegetables, and ginger – sauté for 2-3 minutes.
  • Move vegetables to the side of the skillet and pour whisked eggs into the center. Scramble eggs in pan until fully cooked, then toss with the veggies.
  • Add in the rice and butter, cook for 5 minutes stirring every 30 seconds.
  • Pour in soy sauce and sesame oil, toss to coat rice in sauce then pack into bowls and serve.

Recipe Video

Notes

  • Serve it with Gluten-Free Dumplings for an Asian-inspired meal.
  • Store it away: divide this recipe into meal prep containers to grab-and-go throughout the week or refrigerate it in one big container to reheat for dinner.

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