Thai Peanut Chicken Quinoa Bowls have the signature flavors of Chicken Pad Thai in protein-packed, gluten-free form. Quick, easy, and delicious!
I confess to making a ton of bad Pad Thai in the past, your honor. It was thick, gloopy, and the furthest thing from appetizing. After finally mastering the homemade recipe though (made without Tamarind paste, no less!) I decided to toss the savory, homemade sauce with cooked quinoa to create this healthy, protein packed, gluten free version of Pad Thai.
Thai Peanut Chicken Quinoa Bowls are fresh, flavorful, and fast. A truly fun take on Pad Thai that will leave you full and satisfied for hours after eating!
Made with nearly all fridge, freezer and pantry staples, too! Raid the cupboards to get this gorgeous and flavorful meal on the dinner table tonight.
Start by rinsing quinoa under cold running water.
Quinoa is naturally coated in a bitter substance called saponin which needs to be rinsed off. Just add the quinoa to a fine mesh sieve and rinse under cold running water. I go an extra step and line my sieve with cheesecloth because hate to lose even a single seed through the mesh!
After rinsing the quinoa, add it to chicken broth then bring to a boil, place a lid on top, turn the heat down to low, and simmer until all the broth is absorbed and the quinoa is tender, about 15 minutes.
Fluff with a fork then set aside to cool slightly.
Meanwhile get the Thai Peanut Sauce ready. To a bowl add:
- Gluten-free tamari
- Rice vinegar
- Water
- Sugar
- Creamy peanut butter
- Gluten-free chili garlic sauce
Microwave for 20 seconds then stir with a fork until smooth. Set aside. Sauce = done!
Now get the rest of the ingredients ready including:
- Thinly sliced chicken breast
- Coleslaw mix
- Frozen shelled edamame
- Green onions
- Egg whisked with sesame oil
- Chopped roasted peanuts
My #1 rule for stir frying is to make sure all your ingredients are prepped and ready to go before you start cooking. The actual stir fry process goes too quickly to be chopping or measuring in the middle of it!
Time to start cookin’! Heat peanut oil (or vegetable or coconut oil) in a large wok or skillet over high heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper then add to the wok and stir fry until no longer pink. Remove to a place then set aside.
Heat another teaspoon peanut oil in the wok then add the coleslaw mix, shelled frozen edamame, and green onions. Stir fry until just becoming tender then push to the outsides of the wok.
In the center of the wok add the egg whisked with sesame oil then stir until just barely scrambled.
Finally, add the cooked quinoa and chicken back into the wok along with the chopped peanuts and sauce.
Toss to combine, then serve topped with (LOTS of) extra chopped peanuts!
So savory from the peanut sauce, and I just love all the vegetables mixed with fluffy quinoa, and stir fried chicken. Oh and the chopped peanuts!! They’re not to be missed. I hope you enjoy every single bite of this truly delectable take on Chicken Pad Thai!
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
- 1-1/2 cups chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons peanut oil or vegetable oil, divided
- 1 chicken breast, ~1/1lb, thinly sliced
- salt and pepper
- 1 cup coleslaw mix
- 1/2 cup frozen shelled edamame
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 1 egg
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/2 cup roasted peanuts, chopped and divided
For the Thai Peanut Sauce:
- 1/4 cup gluten free reduced-sodium Tamari, or soy sauce if not GF
- 2 Tablespoons water
- 1 Tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon creamy peanut butter
- 2 teaspoons gluten free chili garlic sauce
Directions
- Add quinoa to a small saucepan with the chicken broth then bring to a boil, place a lid on top, turn heat to low and cook until quinoa has absorbed chicken broth, about 15 minutes. Fluff with a fork then set aside.
- Combine all sauce ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl then microwave for 20 seconds. Stir until smooth then set aside. Whisk together egg and sesame oil in a small bowl then set aside.
- Heat 1 teaspoon peanut oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper then add to wok and stir fry until no longer pink. Remove to a plate then set aside.
- Heat remaining teaspoon peanut oil in wok then add coleslaw mix, frozen edamame, and green onions. Stir fry until tender, 2-3 minutes, then push to outsides of wok, creating a clear space in the center. Add egg whisked with sesame oil to center of wok then stir fry until soft scrambled.
- Add cooked chicken, quinoa, sauce, and half the chopped peanuts to wok then toss to combine. Serve with remaining chopped peanuts.
Notes
- Throw in any leftover veggies when you stir fry! You can also make extra quinoa earlier in the week to be ready to make this.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
Made this last night and it was delicious! Didn’t have edamame in the freezer so I used peas, but otherwise the same. Kids loved it too!
Eating this for lunch right now – it’s so delicious! Glad to have another option to add into my quinoa lunch rotation!
Also wanted to note that I subbed broccoli slaw for the coleslaw mix because that’s what i had on hand and it works great here.
I saw this while eating my bordering-on-boring salad with quinoa for lunch at work today – and did I sure wish it was this delicious looking bowl instead! For some reason in our house we love Asian-inspired meals, but only think to make them every now and again. Lucky for us, when the craving hits we already have a bunch of the ingredients (sesame oil, chili garlic sauce, rice vinegar, soy sauce etc.) on hand!
I can’t wait to make this! It looks amazing!! Thanks for always having such great recipe ideas. My husband gets excited if I say I am making an “IowaGirlEats” recipe for dinner! :)
I have a soy allergy. What would you suggest using in place of the edamame?
Peas, zucchini, or chopped broccoli would be good!
so so yummy looking! I am so pumped I just bought a huge organic Bolivian quinoa at Costco. Super cool. Yep.
I shouldn’t have looked at this while I was hungry…
Oh my word…this looks so yummy! Can’t wait to try it! Came at the best time…right before I headed to the grocery store for dinner items. And I’ll have to check out “The Heat”. I like Melissa McCarthy! She’s always good for a laugh!
I am oh so excited to make this! Adore anything with quinoa!
yes, I would like a bowl full of this in front of me now. i always make burrito bowls with quinoa but never asian themed bowls. this is so delicious looking.
Yep. Minnesota is cancelled. Except for the gym I work at. It’s January, so you better believe people made it to the gym…even though my phone told me it was -26 with a windchill of -49 when I drove into work. #crazy
This recipe looks amazing! I love me some thai food and I’d love to try to make my own at home! Pinning and adding this to my weekly favorites! :)
These are the times I wish my fork could go through the screen. That looks SO good! My husband and I actually just moved to Chicago from Dallas and it is a whopping -15 outside today with a -40 windchill. Seriously. Being a Texan this cold just feels evil to me. Of course our first winter would be the worst they have had in years LOL I’m glad I have healthy recipes like these when all I want to warm up is macaroni and cheese
Oh Kristin!
Thanks so much for explaining how to cook quinoa properly!
Tonight, we have the Skinny Chicken and Rice Casserole, but I have to squeeze this delicious dinner into this week as well!