Asian Grilled Chicken with Snap Pea Slaw is a healthy grilled chicken recipe that's full of flavor, vibrant colors, and crunch.
We’ve used our grill more in the past month than we did ALL last summer. The latest dish to grace our grill grates?
Asian Grilled Chicken with Snap Pea Slaw.
File this gorgeous and vibrant grilled chicken recipe under big flavor with minimal effort. Quick cooking, bright, and healthy too!
Just LOOK at the colors in this Snap Pea Slaw! As delicious to eat as it is gorgeous to look at.
Asian-Inspired Marinated Chicken
Chicken marinated in my favorite Asian-inspired ingredients including gluten-free Tamari or soy sauce, sesame oil, chili sauce, a little brown sugar, lime juice, garlic, and ginger is grilled then topped with an ultra-crunchy slaw made from shredded red cabbage, green onions, shredded carrots, and sugar snap peas.
Truly, this chicken is one of the most delicious to ever come off my grill. It’s got the perfect balance of tangy, heat, and a little sweet and I love the contrast of hot, sizzling chicken topped with cold, crunchy slaw.
This is a must try, easy grilling recipe!
How to Make this Recipe
Start by mixing up the marinade and slaw dressing, which are one and the same.
In a bowl whisk together:
- Gluten-free low-sodium Tamari (or soy sauce if not GF)
- Brown sugar
- Sesame oil
- Sesame seeds
- Siracha chili sauce
- Ground ginger
- Minced garlic
- Lime juice
- Salt and pepper
Reserve 1/3 cup of the marinade then add the rest to a big Ziplock bag with chopped green onions and chicken breasts that have been pounded to an even thickness.
Squish the bag to make sure everything’s coated then marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes and up to 4 or 5 hours.
When it’s time to eat, preheat the grill on high heat until it reaches at least 400 degrees then turn the heat down to medium.
- Tip: It’s important to keep the heat over medium as any higher will cause the sugar in the marinade to burn vs caramelize.
Spray one side of the chicken breasts with nonstick spray then place sprayed side down on the grill and grill for 3-4 minutes per side, spraying the tops before flipping. Be sure to keep the lid shut when grilling!
While the chicken’s grilling, toss together the crunchy Snap Pea Slaw.
That’s just shredded red cabbage, sliced sugar snap peas, shredded carrots, and green onions that have been sliced on the diagonal, tossed with the reserved marinade. Taste then add extra lime juice, salt, and pepper if needed.
Once the chicken is cooked through, plate it then top with the crunchy fresh slaw. Drizzle with extra lime juice, if you please, then dig in!
I hope you love this crunchy, savory, fresh and healthy summer grilling dish!
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts, ~2lbs, pounded to an even thickness
- 3 green onions, chopped into thirds
- 6 Tablespoons gluten free reduced-sodium Tamari, or soy sauce if not GF
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1-1/2 Tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 Tablespoon sesame seeds
- 2 teaspoons Siracha chili sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed
- 1/2 lime, juiced
- salt and pepper
For the Snap Pea Slaw:
- 3 cups thinly shredded red cabbage, ~1/2 small head
- 1 cup sugar snap peas, thinly sliced on the diagnoal
- 2 carrots, peeled then thinly sliced or shredded
- 3 green onions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
Directions
- Place chicken breasts in a large ziplock bag with the green onions then season with salt and pepper and set aside. Combine Tamari, brown sugar, sesame oil, sesame seeds, chili sauce, ground ginger, smashed garlic, and lime juice in a bowl then whisk to combine. Reserve 1/3 cup marinade then pour the remaining marinade into the bag with the chicken and green onions. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 5 hours.
- Preheat grill over high heat for 10 minutes (I like to let my grill get to at least 400 degrees.) Turn heat down to medium then spray chicken very well with nonstick spray and place sprayed side down on the grill. Grill for 3-4 minutes a side with the lid closed, spraying the top sides before flipping. Remove chicken to a plate then let rest for 10 minutes.
For the Snap Pea Slaw:
- Add ingredients to a large bowl with the reserved marinade then toss with tongs to combine. Taste then add extra lime juice, salt, and pepper if necessary. Top chicken with slaw then serve.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
This was so good, but I was surprised that it said to reserve 1/3 c marinade, when it only made about 1/3 c marinade total for me. So I divided in half for each, and it was fine. Did anyone else have that happen?
Hi Jane! Is it possible anything was mismeasured? With the Tamari, brown sugar, sesame oil, sesame seeds, chili sauce, and lime juice amounts listed, you should have close to 1 cup of marinade.
This recipe was AMAZING! I don’t comment often, but saw this only had 1 review so far and had to comment. I made it with grilled chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts, because that’s what I had, but I will try breasts too. My kids are pretty good about eating healthy, but I was super surprised that even my four-year-old LOVED this…and she always says she doesn’t like chicken. Making it again tonight since it was requested by all 6 members of my family. :)
Yes!! Any recipe that a 4 year old loves is a winner! So glad you ALL enjoyed!
Do you put the onion in the same bag with the raw chicken or with the reserved marinade? Do you grill the onions?
OK…I have 3 boys…7, 11 & 47…LOL…I married the last one…now, where was I? Oh yes, because I’m tired of being a “short-order” cook, I have worn out Google looking for healthy, easy, quick and yummy meals that, fingers crossed, my 2 boys and 1 man-child will all eat. Thankfully I found your site. I made this for dinner tonight and I have never seen or heard the dinner table to quite!! You would have thought they hadn’t eaten in weeks!! They loved it!! All 3 of them!! They ate vegetables!!! All 3 of them!!! Between bites, my 11yr old asked me “Mom, where did we order dinner from?” Can’t get any better than that
Oh my gosh – SO glad to hear it!! Such a wonderful thing when everyone will eat what’s on their plates!
A lot of popular asian-american dishes, you can substitute the protein without too much change in flavor. Stir-fry, pad thai, peanut noodles. If you want real asian cooking that just use one part of the chicken, I got nothing for you.
I found another blog post of yours that makes my mouth water! I can’t begin to explain how much I love the majority of them. Now I’m contemplating on whether to bring the salmon skewers or this chicken to a bbq!
Tried this with salmon tonight…. Awesome!! Quick question… You refer to soy sauce not being gluten free, but the label on my La Choy says “Gluten Free As Always”… Any idea what the deal with that is? We’re trying to do gluten free with the hubs’ Crohn’s disease…
That is awesome to hear, Lyndsay!! Soy sauce is brewed with wheat while Tamari is brewed with little to no wheat (which is why it’s always important to check the bottle to make sure it says “gluten-free Tamari”.) I think La Choy is a special case in that they still label their gluten-free Tamari as “soy sauce” even though it’s brewed without wheat. My best guess is that they know people are more familiar with the term soy sauce so they stick with that but also include the gluten-free label. Long and rambling story short, if it says gluten-free, and he has no reaction, you should be good to go!
Suggestions on another side – potatoes or rice dish maybe?
I have served this a couple times with grilled zucchini and white rice, though my Cilantro-Lime Rice would be great too!
I made this last night it was really good and super quick! Will definitely make it again, YUM!
That is awesome, Denise!! Thanks so much for the feedback!
This is a great way to start off grilling season! Just love the colors of the snap pea slaw and the flavors of the Asian marinade!!