Spicy Asian Chicken is easy enough to make on a work night and this tasty low-carb chicken dish is delicious served with cauliflower rice. And you can make this recipe as spicy or mild as your family prefers!

Pin this Spicy Asian Chicken to make it later!

Spicy Asian Chicken finished dish on serving platter

Today I’m reminding you about this absolutely delicious Spicy Asian Chicken that I think is perfect for a spring dinner idea! And something like Roasted Asparagus with Soy-Sesame Glaze would be a tasty side dish for this chicken if you’re feeling the asparagus love this time of year.

My niece Kara and I experimented with several variations of this recipe, and this version was the winner! It’s made with strips of boneless, skinless chicken breasts and a sauce with Sugar-Free Apricot Preserves (affiliate link), gluten-free soy sauce (affiliate link), rice vinegar, sesame oil, garlic puree, ginger puree, Chili Garlic Sauce (affiliate link), and Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (affiliate link) or sweetener of your choice.

The sugar-free apricot preserves we used contain Splenda, but no worries if you don’t want artificial sweeteners, just look for no-sugar-added apricot preserves instead. That change will make a sauce that’s slightly higher in sugar, but still pretty carb-conscious for this kind of sauce. 

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

What gives this Spicy Asian Chicken the Asian flavors?

We’re not claiming this is an authentic Asian dish, but there are plenty of Asian flavors from soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, ginger, chili garlic sauce, and sesame seeds. And if you’re experienced at making stir-fry recipes, you might want to cut the chicken pieces a little smaller and cook this in a wok. That version will be delicious as well!

How spicy is this Spicy Asian Chicken?

Maybe we should have called this recipe Just Barely Spicy Asian Chicken because the sauce is slightly sweet but still relatively low in sugar, and just spicy enough to be interesting. And of course you can use more or less Chili Garlic Sauce to make it as spicy or mild as you prefer.

Can you use chicken thighs for this Asian chicken recipe?

You can definitely use boneless, skinless chicken thighs to make this recipe if you don’t mind a bit more trimming.

Spicy Asian Chicken process shots collage

How to Make Spicy Asian Chicken:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

  1. Whisk together the sauce ingredients.
  2. Trim chicken breasts and then cut each breast crosswise into about 5 or 6 pieces.
  3. Heat the oil in a 12 inch frying pan; I used my favorite Green Pan (affiliate link) for this.
  4. When the oil is hot, brown the chicken briefly on one side, seasoning with salt and pepper.
  5. When chicken pieces are barely brown, turn them over, pour in the sauce, and cook on medium low (turning a few times) until the chicken is cooked through and glazed with sauce.
  6. Cook chicken just until it’s barely cooked through; do not overcook.
  7. Serve hot.

Spicy Asian Chicken on serving plate with chopsticks in background.

Make it a Low-Carb Meal:

Spicy Asian Chicken would be delicious with rice or Cauliflower Rice on the side if desired. Stir-fried vegetables like broccolini or sugar snap peas  or Spicy Cilantro Peanut Slaw would also be great with this.

More Spicy Chicken or Turkey Recipes:

Spicy Asian Chicken finished dish on serving platter
Yield: 6 servings

Spicy Asian Chicken

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 9 minutes
Total Time 19 minutes

This Spicy Asian Chicken tastes like it came from a restaurant, but it’s easy enough to make any night of the week! And you can make this Asian chicken dish as spicy or mild as you prefer.

Ingredients

Ingredients:

  • 4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (see notes)
  • 1 T peanut oil (or use the oil of your choice)
  • salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
  • toasted sesame seeds, for garnish (optional)

Sauce Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup sugar-free Apricot preserves (see notes)
  • 2 T gluten-free soy sauce
  • 1 T rice vinegar (not sweetened)
  • 1 tsp. sesame oil
  • 1 tsp. garlic puree (from a jar)
  • 1 tsp. ginger puree (in a jar)
  • 1 T Chili Garlic Sauce (see notes)
  • 2 T Golden Monkfruit Sweetener

Instructions

  1. Whisk together the sugar-free apricot preserves, gluten-free soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, garlic puree, ginger puree, brown sugar (or sweetener), and granulated Stevia to make the sauce.
  2. Trim chicken pieces, removing fat and any undesirable parts. (If using thighs, I use kitchen shears to cut out the little pockets of fat on the back side.)
  3. Heat the oil in a 12 inch frying pan. (I used my favorite Green Pan (affiliate link), which was perfect for this.)
  4. When the oil is hot, add the chicken pieces skin side down, season with salt and fresh ground black pepper, and cook over medium-high heat just until the chicken starts to brown, about 4 minutes.
  5. Reduce heat to medium low, add the sauce, and continue to cook the chicken in the sauce, turning a few time, just until chicken pieces are cooked through and glazed with sauce, about 4-5 minutes longer. DO NOT OVERCOOK or the chicken will be tough.
  6. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds if desired and serve hot.

Notes

You can also make this with or use 12 bone-in, skinless chicken thighs if you prefer.

We used Sugar-Free Apricot Preserves, gluten-free soy sauce, and Chili Garlic Sauce for this recipe. (affiliate links) If you don’t want artificial sweetener use no-sugar-added apricot preserves, which will be just slightly higher in sugar.

Use more or less Chili Garlic Sauce to taste; this was probably too spicy for kids so reduce the spiciness if desired.

I originally made this with a mixture of sweetener and brown sugar, but now I would use Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (affiliate link).

This recipe created by Kalyn and Kara, with lots of experiments that were not quite right!

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 180Total Fat: 5.9gSaturated Fat: 1.3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 68mgSodium: 496mgCarbohydrates: 8.2gFiber: .2gSugar: .5gProtein: 25g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

Square image of Spicy Asian Chicken on serving plate with chopsticks in background.

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
When it’s made with Sugar-Free Apricot Preserves and Golden Monkfruit Sweetener, this Spicy Asian Chicken is a great dish for low-carb diets. Since it contains apricot preserves it would be limited to Phase 2 or 3 for the original South Beach Diet.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Easy to Cook Recipes to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This Spicy Asian Chicken recipe was first posted in 2015. The recipe was last updated with more information in 2023.

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