Thai-Inspired Chicken and Cabbage Bowls

Thai Chicken and Cabbage Bowls feature fresh vegetables like bell pepper, carrots, ginger and garlic, tender chicken breasts, and a delicious sauce to bring everything together. This delicious dinner recipe is the ideal clean eating meal, full of protein, carbs and fiber.

These Thai-Inspired Chicken and Cabbage Bowls are a riff on my Thai Turkey and Cabbage Bowls, which has been a much adored dinner recipe among my audience ever since I shared it.

Because the ground turkey version was a hit and is one of my personal favorites as well, I thought it wise to make a chicken version for those who prefer chicken over ground turkey.

After thoroughly testing both recipes, I couldn’t tell you which one I prefer! They are both very similar and also so delicious.

In addition to boasting amazing Thai curry flavors, these bowls are one of those macro friendly meals you’ll love putting on repeat.

They are easy to make and a lovely celebration of fresh produce. Clean eating at its finest!

All things considered, these bowls pack a nutritious punch! This high-protein dinner recipe is a great source of fiber, getting you a good portion of the dietary fiber you need for the day in one meal. 

When broken into three servings, each bowl contains 513 calories, 17 grams of fat, 39 grams of total carbohydrates, 15 grams of fiber (and therefore 24 grams of net carbs), and 57 grams of protein.

Depending on your nutritional needs, you can play with the quantities of each ingredient to hit your target macronutrients. 

Because there’s so much protein and fiber in each serving, this recipe is highly satiating, which is ideal for folks like me who really enjoy feeling full after dinner.

Let’s discuss the simple ingredients in these highly satiating chicken and cabbage bowls.

Ingredients for Thai Chicken and Cabbage Bowls:

Avocado Oil: Pick a neutral oil for cooking, such as avocado oil or coconut oil. Olive oil works too but I prefer using avocado oil because it has a higher smoke point.

Vegetables: Yellow onion, green cabbage (red cabbage or napa cabbage works too), carrots, red bell peppers, fresh garlic cloves, fresh ginger, green onion.

You can swap out any of these vegetables for your favorite vegetables. Broccoli, cauliflower, bean sprouts, green beans, snap peas, bok choy, and zucchini are all great options.

Chicken: Boneless skinless chicken breasts or boneless skinless chicken thighs are chopped up and cooked into the mass of vegetables to add quality lean protein to the meal. You can also use ground chicken.

Thai Sauce Ingredients: Sunflower seed butter (or nut or seed butter of choice), liquid aminos (or soy sauce or coconut aminos), rice vinegar, and curry powder.

This combination of ingredients adds slightly sweet, creamy, umami, savory flavors to the meal. Add in 1 to 3 teaspoons of sriracha for some spice and increase the amount of any of the ingredients to bump up the flavor. 

When combined, all of these ingredients come together in a blissful bowl of soft veggies and energizing protein with the tastiest Thai-inspired flavors. 

There are plenty of ways you can change up this delicious healthy stir fry. Here are some options!

Recipe Adaptations:

• Use any type of nut butter or seed butter in place of sunflower seed butter in the sauce. Peanut butter will give you that classic Thai peanut sauce vibe, which is delicious! Almond butter, cashew butter, and tahini work too.
• Add ½ to 1 cup coconut milk (full-fat canned coconut milk recommended) to the sauce for a coconut curry vibe.
• Double the sauce if you like a lot of flavor and/or richness in your meals.
• Save some time by using leftover cooked chicken, shredded chicken, or rotisserie chicken instead of cooking raw boneless chicken breasts.
• If you have fish sauce on hand and you enjoy adding it to your Thai recipes, feel free to add 1 teaspoon of fish sauce. 
• Serve the bowls with chopped fresh cilantro on top if you’re a cilantro lover.
• Replace the pure maple syrup in the sauce with brown sugar or sugar-free sweetener, or omit the sweetener altogether.
• Love sesame oil? Add 1 to 2 teaspoons of toasted sesame oil to the sauce if you’d like. 
• Serve Thai chicken and cabbage over rice noodles or white rice for a great option for carb lovers.
• For spicy Thai food, add red pepper, red chili flakes, cayenne pepper or red chili paste to your personal spice level.

Now that we’ve covered the basic ingredients, let’s make this healthy dinner recipe!

How to Make Thai Chicken and Cabbage:

Stir the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl until well-combined. Set aside until ready to use.

Heat the avocado oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet (I recommend a 12-inch skillet with a deep lip) or thick-bottomed pot such as a Dutch oven. Allow the oil to heat up for a minute or two, then add the chopped onion.

Sauté the onion for 3 to 5 minutes, or until it begins to soften.

Add the chopped cabbage and cover the pot or skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage has wilted, about 8 to 10 minutes. 

Stir in the grated carrot, bell pepper, ginger, and garlic.

Scoot the vegetables off to one side of the pot (or skillet) and add the chopped chicken. Allow the chicken to brown for 5 to 8 minutes, giving it a stir or two while keeping it separate from the vegetables.

After the chicken has browned, stir it into the vegetables.

Cover the pot and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the chicken has cooked through, about 8 to 15 minutes.

Add in the sauce and stir well until everything is coated with sauce. Stir in the green onions.

Taste the meal for flavor and add more liquid aminos (or soy sauce), vinegar, sea salt (or kosher salt), black pepper, etc. to your personal taste.

Serve Thai Chicken and cabbage in large bowls, and enjoy! I like serving the recipe with fresh lime wedges so I can drizzle a little fresh lime juice over everything. I also add a little extra liquid aminos to my bowl because I prefer my food on the saltier side.

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

The way I prepare this recipe, the vegetables turn out very soft, which is my personal preference. 

If you prefer your vegetables to be crunchy, prepare the recipe in the reverse order in the sense that you will cook the chicken first, then add in the vegetables and cook until they reach your desired level of doneness. 

Meal Prep Tips:

• Chop all of the vegetables before you do anything else and keep them in separate bowls or one large bowl until you need them. 
• The sauce can be made ahead of time and stored in a small bowl or jar until you need it.
• You can use a box grater or the shredder attachment of a food processor to quickly grate heads of cabbage.
• To save time, buy a bag of coleslaw mix (remember, you’ll need 6-8 cups of shredded cabbage, so depending on the size of the bag, you may need two) to eliminate the step of chopping the cabbage.

And that’s it! An easy weeknight meal that’s perfect for meal prep or whipping up at a moment’s notice. 

Thai food lovers or anyone who enjoys Thai flavors is bound to love this great recipe.

If you enjoy healthy dinner recipes like this, also try out these delicious recipes that are designed to be served in big bowls.

More Bowl Recipes:

• Grilled Cuban Mojo Chicken Bowls
• Unstuffed Cabbage Bowls
• Salmon Power Bowls with Blueberry Salsa
• Chicken Burrito Bowls
• Turmeric Ginger Ground Turkey Bowls
• Ground Turkey Bowls with Cabbage Rice
• Korean Bulgogi and Rice Bowls  
• Salmon Poke Bowls with Crab Salad
• Chicken Pad Thai 

Enjoy a big bowl of meat and veggie bliss!

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4.57 from 23 votes

Thai Chicken and Cabbage Bowls

Thai flavors shine through in these delicious Chicken and Cabbage Bowls! Fresh vegetables, lean protein, and an incredible Thai-inspired sauce make this filling dinner recipe so dreamy.

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time35 minutes mins

Total Time50 minutes mins

Course: Chicken Main Dishes

Cuisine: Thai

Servings: 3 Servings

Calories: 513kcal

Author: Julia

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp avocado oil
• 1 medium-sized yellow onion chopped
• 1 medium-sized head green cabbage thinly sliced*
• 1 large carrot grated
• 1 red bell pepper cut into matchsticks
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts chopped into bite sizes
• 4 large cloves garlic minced
• 1 Tbsp fresh ginger peeled and grated
• 5 stalks green onion chopped
• sea salt to taste

For the Sauce:

• 2 Tbsp sunflower seed butter or peanut butter
• 2 Tbsp liquid aminos**
• 1 Tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 Tbsp pure maple syrup optional
• 1 tsp curry powder

Instructions

• Heat the avocado oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet (I recommend a 12-inch skillet with a deep lip) or thick-bottomed pot such as a Dutch oven. Allow the oil to heat up for a minute or two, then add the chopped onion. Sauté the onion for 3 to 5 minutes, or until it begins to soften.
• Add the chopped cabbage and cover the pot or skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage has wilted, about 8 to 10 minutes. 
• Stir in the grated carrot, bell pepper, ginger, and garlic.
• Scoot the vegetables off to one side of the pot (or skillet) and add the chopped chicken. Allow the chicken to brown for 5 to 8 minutes, giving it a stir or two while keeping it separate from the vegetables. After the chicken has browned, stir it into the vegetables.
• Cover the pot and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the chicken has cooked through, about 8 to 15 minutes.
• Add in the sauce and stir well until everything is coated with sauce. Stir in the green onions.
• Taste the meal for flavor and add more liquid aminos (or soy sauce), vinegar, sea salt (or kosher salt), black pepper, etc. to your personal taste.
• Serve Thai Chicken and cabbage in large bowls, and enjoy! I like serving the recipe with fresh lime wedges so I can drizzle a little fresh lime juice over everything. I also add a little extra liquid aminos to my bowl.

Video

Notes

*You’re looking for about 6 to 8 cups of chopped cabbage. You can also use some purple cabbage in addition to green cabbage if you’d like. Use a bag of coleslaw mix for pre shredded cabbage to save time if you'd like.

**You can also use soy sauce or coconut aminos in place of liquid aminos

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

The way I prepare this recipe, the vegetables turn out very soft, which is my personal preference. 

If you prefer your vegetables to be crunchy, prepare the recipe in the reverse order in the sense that you will cook the chicken first, then add in the vegetables and cook until they reach your desired level of doneness.

Nutrition

Serving: 1(of 3) | Calories: 513kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 57g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 128mg | Sodium: 883mg | Fiber: 15g | Sugar: 21g

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