Healthy General Tso’s Chicken (Paleo)

This Healthy General Tso’s Chicken recipe is a soy-free, refined sugar-free, gluten-free version of the classic takeout that is made with wholesome ingredients. Paleo General Chicken is crispy tender breaded pan-fried chicken engulfed in delicious tangy sauce. 

Is anyone else here a self-proclaimed annihilator of General Tso’s Chicken? 

Certainly, I’m not the only one!

I’ve mentioned this before here on The Roasted Root, but I basically ate my way through grad school on Panda Express. Double General Chicken (or orange chicken) and all the fried rice, hold the noodles.

…is my order, if you please.

Well, here we are, making this glorious takeout favorite in the comfort of our own home.

And we’re making a healthy general tso chicken recipe! It is all-things grain-free, refined sugar-free, and soy-free. 

Don’t worry! In spite of the cleaner ingredients, this beauty is a nearly perfect replica of our much coveted Chinese takeout.

If you love Chinese food, also try my 30-Minute Healthy Orange Chicken, Healthy  Mongolian Beef or my Gluten-Free Chicken Chow Mein! 

In case you aren’t familiar…

What is General Chicken?:

General Chicken, also known as General Tso’s Chicken or General’s Chicken, is one of the most popular Chinese-inspired dishes found at Chinese restaurants in the U.S. It is a classic takeout dish!

While I’m no historian, a quick google search leads me to conclude General Tso’s Chicken is not authentically Chinese, but more of an American adaptation. It is deep-fried chicken swaddled in a sticky sweet and sour sauce, and let’s just call a spade a spade: it is DELICIOUS.

The deep frying in a flour batter is what is responsible for the crispy chicken, yet it is also what makes the classic version full of inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids. 

We’re here to rectify that to provide a healthy version that requires zero deep frying, no seed oils, no soy or refined sugars.

Let’s discuss the healthy ingredients for this delicious dinner!

Ingredients for General Tso’s Chicken:

Sauce: Coconut aminos, molasses, pure maple syrup, rice vinegar, tomato paste, sesame oil, garlic, and sriracha. It may seem like a lot, but you likely already have most of these ingredients on hand. 

See my Recipe Customizations section below to see what substitutions you can make. All ingredients combined together results in crazy delicious sweet and sour sauce with just the slightest kick.

Chicken Breasts or Thighs: Boneless skinless chicken breasts (or chicken thighs), egg, tapioca flour, avocado oil for cooking.

We chop the chicken, douse it in one well-beaten egg and toss it in tapioca flour to bread the chicken.

This ensures the chicken gets nice and crispy and the tapioca flour helps thicken the sauce to ensure that sauce is extra sticky and amazing. 

For Serving: Chopped green onions and sesame seeds – you can skip either/or, but both add to the experience!

This combination of clean ingredients is what makes this easy recipe a healthier version of the Chinese food classic.

Now that we’ve covered the basic ingredients, let’s make this easy healthy General Tso’s Chicken!

How to Make Healthy General Tso’s Chicken:

Add all the ingredients for the sauce to a bowl and whisk together until combined. Set aside until ready to use.

Whisk the egg in a mixing bowl and add the chopped chicken. Use a spoon to stir the chicken and egg together until all of the pieces are well-coated.

Add the tapioca flour to the mixing bowl with the chopped chicken.

Stir well until the chicken is coated in egg and tapioca flour.

Note: the longer the chicken sits in this mixture, the more it will stick together, so try to cook it as soon as you can to avoid the chicken sticking together.

Heat the avocado oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. 

Add half of the chicken and cook (in a single layer), stirring occasionally, until golden brown and crispy, about 2 to 3 minutes.

There’s no need to cook the chicken through just yet. Note: if the chicken is sticking together when you transfer it to the skillet, use two spoons to pull the pieces apart while it is cooking. 

Transfer the first batch of cooked chicken to a plate, then brown the remaining chicken. Add the first batch of chicken back into the skillet so that all of the chicken pieces are in it.

Pour in the sauce and bring to a full boil.

Cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce is very thick and chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Stir in the green onion and sesame seeds.

Serving Suggestions:

Serve general chicken with choice of cauliflower rice or steamed white rice or brown rice. 

If you want to be a real winner about it, you can serve it up with Cauliflower Fried Rice.

Or if you do grains, you can go for Red Curry Fried Rice, Basil Fried Rice, or Pineapple Fried Rice.

Serve with a side of Stir Fry Vegetables, Sesame Garlic Sauteed Bok Choy, or Roasted Green Beans for a complete meal.

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Do note that this sweet and sour chicken is best when served fresh. The texture becomes less crispy as it sits in the refrigerator, so while I typically advocate for meal prepping dinners in advance, I recommend enjoying this one as soon as you prepare it.

Nevertheless, I recommend air frying leftovers to get the crisp back when reheating. 

Recipe Customizations:

• Replace the coconut aminos with liquid aminos or low-sodium soy sauce if you don’t need this to be a paleo friendly recipe.
• Use virtually any sweetener in place of the molasses and pure maple syrup. Coconut sugar, honey, and brown sugar work great! You can also play with the portions depending on your personal taste. Hoisin sauce is a good option here too.
• Substitute arrowroot flour or corn starch for the tapioca flour.
• Add 2 to 3 teaspoons of grated fresh ginger to the sauce if you’re a big ginger lover.
• Mix 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes into the sauce for some spice.
• Use ground chicken or ground turkey if you prefer it.

And that’s it! A quick weeknight dinner recipe that expertly quenches the craving for takeout!

The whole family will agree the crispy texture and depth of flavor makes this a meal worthy of putting on repeat!

Enjoy this paleo general chicken with fresh veggies and your choice of rice for a balanced meal.

Looking for some additional healthier versions of Chinese cooking? Try out these reader favorites.

More Healthy Takeout Recipes:

• Healthy Kung Pao Chicken
• Healthy Sesame Chicken  
• Sesame Ginger Cashew Chicken
• Thai Paleo Panang Curry
• 30-Minute Thai Basil Chicken
• Drunken Noodles (Pad Kee Mao) With Ground Turkey

Bringing home the takeout!

Healthy General Tso’s Chicken Recipe

4.72 from 28 votes

Paleo General Tso's Chicken made grain-free, soy-free and refined sugar-free for a healthier takeout recipe. Serve it up with your choice of rice and cooked veggies for a complete healthy dinner!

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Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

Sauce:

• 1/3 cup coconut aminos or liquid aminos
• 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup or honey
• 1 Tbsp molasses or coconut sugar
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 to 3 tsp sriracha to taste, optional

Chicken:

• 2 large chicken breasts (1 to 1.5 lbs), chopped
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup tapioca flour or arrowroot flour
• 2 Tbsp avocado oil

For Serving:

• 2 tsp sesame seeds
• 2 stalks green onion chopped

Instructions

• Add all the ingredients for the sauce to a bowl and whisk together until combined. Set aside until ready to use.
• Whisk the egg in a mixing bowl and add the chopped chicken. Use a spoon to stir the chicken and egg together until all of the pieces are well-coated.
• Add the tapioca flour to the mixing bowl with the chicken.
• Stir well until the chicken is coated in egg and tapioca flour. Note: the longer the chicken sits in this mixture, the more it will stick together, so try to cook it as soon as you can to avoid stickage.
• Heat the avocado oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.
• Add half of the chicken and cook (in a single layer), stirring occasionally, until browned and crispy, about 2 to 3 minutes. There’s no need to cook the chicken through just yet. Note: if the chicken is sticking together when you transfer it to the skillet, use two spoons to pull the pieces apart while it is cooking.
• Transfer the first batch of chicken to a plate, then brown the remaining chicken.
• Add the first batch of chicken back into the skillet so that all of the chicken pieces are in it. Pour in the sauce and bring it to a full boil.
• Cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce is very thick and chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Stir in the green onion and sesame seeds.
• Serve general chicken with choice of cauliflower rice or steamed white or brown rice.

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Nutrition

Serving: 1of 4 · Calories: 410kcal · Carbohydrates: 19g · Protein: 39g · Fat: 16g · Fiber: 1g · Sugar: 15g

Author: Julia

Course: Main Dishes

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chicken recipe, dinner, gluten free, grain free, healthy, paleo, refined sugar free, soy free

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I originally shared this recipe for paleo general chicken on October 15, 2020. I updated some of the text and updated the photos, but the recipe itself remains the same.

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