Traditional grill food (i.e. BBQ stuff) doesn’t really tickle my fancy. Don’t get me wrong, I love me a good burger, potato salad, and watermelon, but I don’t generally crave it. Instead I’d prefer a stir fry dish, like this delicious Thai meal.
This stir fry contains chicken, red peppers, and mandarin oranges and it’s coated in a sweet and spicy Thai Chili sauce.
Thai Sweet Chili Chicken Recipe
(About 4 servings)
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil, divided per the directions
- 1 pound chicken, sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced thin
- 1/2 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
- 1 cup Thai sweet chili sauce (I used Ty Ling)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon (ground) cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 can (11 ounces) mandarin sliced oranges
- scallions, thinly sliced (for garnish)
- sesame seeds (for garnish)
Directions:
- In a medium skillet, over Medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon of the sesame oil. Add the sliced chicken and cook it.
- Once the chicken is done cooking, remove it from the skillet.
- Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of the sesame oil then add the sliced red bell pepper and cook it until it has softened and is slightly browned.
- Add the cooked chicken back into the skillet, along with the grated fresh ginger, Thai sweet chili sauce, soy sauce, ground cloves, cinnamon, and pepper. Stir all of the ingredients together and let it simmer for a few minutes.
- Add in the mandarin sliced oranges.
- Plate the stir fry and top with sliced scallions and a sprinkling of sesame seeds.
Adapted from: Half Baked Harvest
Stir fry meals are so dang easy to make. They also tend to be quick to whip up. No wonder I love theses meals 365 days a year. You simply need to throw a whole bunch of ingredients into your skillet and voila you have a lovely looking meal. (Hence the name “stir fry.”)
No prep photos today, T? Nope. It’s not necessary because it’s that simple to make. (Plus, I’ve learned that photos of raw or half cooked chicken just look gross. You’re welcome.)
Using canned veggies or fruits are a neat trick if you can’t find the fresh real deal. Mandarin oranges are not in season by me right now so I opted for canned ones. They are still delicious and will do the trick (and are quite frankly tastier than the fresh ones anyway). These are added into the pan at the end because they are a bit fragile and stirring them with everything else tends to beat them up.
You can find Thai sweet chili sauce in the Asian aisle of your grocery store (mine had a variety of brands to choose from). It’s a lovely combo of sweet and spicy flavors. This Thai sauce is the bomb digity though because I’ve kicked it up by adding some warm spices to it, like fresh ground ginger, cloves, and cinnamon. Sounds so Autumnal, doesn’t it? 😉 I must be inadvertently channeling my love for Fall food.
I’ve served this awesome stir fry over some brown rice. White rice or pretty much any other carb would work too. You could even skip the carbs if you wanted to make this a carb free meal. A great way to do that with Thai is with bean sprouts or cabbage.
The sesame seeds and scallions add a nice crunch factor (and make it look lovely). You can also add a squeeze of lime on top to add a little tang to it.
Are you a fan of grill food?
Here are some other awesome meals.
Sesame Crusted Tofu With Peppers And Onions In A Spicy Peanut Sauce
Really tasty looking dish. We love thai flavors in my house. Need to get around to trying this one day.
I’ve only been into Thai cooking just recently and I’m loving it!
I like grilled food, yes. But I find that a Thai stir fry beats it everytime! Especially if it looks as great as this one does. Ohhh seriously, what a perfect dinner this would make! xx
Yes, we are totally on the same page. 🙂
Wow, stir fry with oranges and ginger. I’m in! 🙂
Sweet!
Stir-fries are one of my favorite weeknight dinner options! And I love that you have the oranges in here – I am a huge fan of citrus in dishes like this!
I’m with ya! 🙂
Really interesting dish. Love your photo. I know stir frys and brown dishes are really difficult to capture but you did such a great job.
That means a lot to me, Bam! Thanks kindly. 🙂
This is added to my to-make list for sure, love it and so easy!
Very cool! Thanks. 🙂
What a beautiful dish you made here Tina! Love all the flavor and the color is just lovely!
Thanks so much Pamela! 🙂
I love Thai flavors! The sweet/spicy kick is great 🙂
I’ve been really into Thai flavors lately!
Wow, this looks fantastic! I love making stir-fry at home and I am loving this combination. I definitely need to give this one a try. Pinning!
Awesome! I hope you love it as much as I do. 🙂
I love grilled food, but I’m also a sucker for homey comforting dishes like this! Love this stir-fry, Tina! So putting it on my dinner menu. 🙂
Wahoo! Thanks. 🙂
SO do-able and pinned for an easy dinner! Thanks T 🙂
Awesome sauce!
I crave grilled food, but I’d also crave this stir fry, Tina! Love the warm spices you used! 🙂
Thanks so much! 🙂
Stir fry meals are one of my favorite, so easy to throw together and tastes amazing! I love the pop of colors in your dish…definitely reminds me of summer!
I totally agree!
Massive fan of grilled / BBQ foods, sometimes because it means the house won’t smell like meat, but mostly because it means its summer. 🙂
I would never have thought to use canned vegetables, do you think they taste good? Or do you feel like you are eating something that isn’t possibly containing much good for you? Would save a bunch of time, this is a great go to mid week recipe.
I think it depends on the veggie and personal preference. In a perfect world, I love fresh, but living in CT, USA it’s not possible to get everything 365 days a year so I’ve learned to experiment when fresh is not available. For example I’d rather eat frozen peas, not canned peas. I think canned pineapple and citrus are great.
Pictures are beautiful and colorful. I’ve never had Thai food, but I’d like to try this. I need to branch out and this looks like the one.
You are so sweet. I really appreciate that. 🙂
My wife is a HUGE fan of stir fries. I’m totally going to have to make this for her. Thanks for a great recipe Tina!
Awesome! 🙂
I’m with ya- I’m all about the stir-fry. I love a good BBQ every once in a while, but on a weekly basis, stir-frys are where it’s at! I can’t wait to try this with the oranges. It looks delish!
Thanks so much! I appreciate you stopping by. 🙂