Grilled Honey Garlic Chicken with Asian Lo Mein Noodles
Especially with two of my children having been born in China, we love to incorporate authentic(ish) meals that honor their birth heritage into our meal planning. Plus, we just love Asian food! This dinner recipe hits all of the yumminess checkboxes. And the best part is that it’s loaded with wholesome nutrition! If you enjoy Asian flavors like garlic, ginger, and soy sauce, you are going to love this meal just as much as we do! With flavorful marinated chicken, lots of fresh, healthy veggies, and a light Asian-inspired noodle sauce, this dairy-free dinner makes regular appearances in our house. It’s multi-stepped but not complicated, and a lot of the prep can be done ahead of time. The marinade is super simple, and I have adapted the noodle recipe (from one of our dear neighbors who was raised in India) to better fit our needs. I use all organic ingredients, which especially helps to make the soy and teriyaki sauces cleaner. I also use cold-pressed options for all cooking oils to maintain the nutritive benefits. Likewise, I do not use olive oil for this recipe to avoid the rancidity from cooking at higher temperatures (in fact, I only use organic cold-pressed EVOO when it will not be cooked). I am able to get everything I need at Sprouts, but the sauces can easily be ordered online at Thrive Market or Amazon.
Lo Mein is traditionally made with egg noodles, but I rely on whole grain einkorn spaghetti for the nutrient content and lower glycemic index, as well as the gentler form of gluten that is often tolerated by those who are gluten-sensitive. However, the noodles could easily be swapped for rice noodles to make a 100% gluten-free meal. Or, stick with regular egg noodles for a more authentic Lo Mein!
The original noodle recipe calls for sautéing the vegetables. I have an Instant Pot though, so I cheat and use it to steam the vegetables with an IP basket. Steaming veggies is one of my favorite ways to use the Instant Pot because the result is just so good – it’s worth the extra pot to clean. I have included the sautéing instructions as a backup, but I really recommend the Instant Pot if you have one!
This recipe does require a bit of multitasking to get everything ready to serve at the same time. I’ve tried to be as clear as possible in the instructions, but please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions! It’s worth all of the chopping, promise! And the noodles make an awesome leftover lunch – they’re even good cold!
Grilled Honey Garlic Chicken with Asian Lo Mein Noodles
Ingredients
For the marinaded chicken:
- 4 tbsp organic, cold-pressed avocado oil
- 4 tbsp organic, low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 cup local honey
- 4 cloves organic garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup water
- 2-3 lbs raw organic chicken breast, thawed
For the noodles:
- 12 oz pkg organic einkorn spaghetti noodles
- 1 small head of organic broccoli
- 1 small organic red onion (yellow would also be fine if that's what you have)
- 1 organic red bell pepper (green is fine if that's what you have)
- 2 large organic carrots (or 3 smaller ones)
- 3 stalks of organic celery
- 4 oz. organic baby bella mushrooms
- 2 tbsp organic, cold-pressed avocado oil (if sautéing veggies)
- 1/3 cup organic, low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 tbsp organic teriyaki sauce
- 2 tbsp organic rice vinegar (I use Marukan)
- 1 tsp organic cold-pressed sesame oil
- 1 tbsp local honey
- 1 tsp chopped, fresh organic ginger
- 4 cloves of organic garlic, minced
- 2 tsp organic ground ginger root
- 1 tsp cornstarch
Instructions
For the chicken:
- Several hours before you want to eat, mix the marinade together in a gallon ziplock bag. Add the avocado oil, soy sauce, honey, garlic, and water. Squish the bag with your hands from the outside to mix, and then add the chicken breasts. Zip the bag closed and make sure the chicken is coated well. Refrigerate and marinate for at least 1 hour, but up to a day. This step could easily be done in the morning before work.
- At about the time the noodles are going into the pot (see below for the noodles instructions), grill the chicken at 350 degrees for approximately 15-20 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. Cooking times vary significantly depending on the grill and the size of the chicken breasts, so using a meat thermometer is important. Keep a close eye on the temperature so the chicken doesn't overcook and get tough!
- When the chicken has reached 165 degrees, remove from the grill and set to the side.
For the Lo Mein:
- Bring a medium-large pot of water to a boil for the pasta and cook pasta according to package directions. If you are using the einkorn spaghetti noodles, the cook time is 10 minutes. When the noodles have finished cooking, strain and set aside, keeping the pot available on the stove to mix the Lo Mein together at the end.
- Meanwhile, chop or slice into bite-size pieces the broccoli, red onion, red bell pepper, carrots, celery, and mushroom. This step could also be done earlier - just refrigerate the veggies until you are ready to cook them.
- Add all of the vegetables to an IP basket and steam in the Instant Pot (with one cup of water in the pot) on the manual setting for zero minutes. Yes, zero minutes - it's perfect! Release the steam immediately when finished to avoid over-steaming. If you are not using an Instant Pot, sauté all of the vegetables in a large skillet with the avocado oil over medium heat until cooked through, approximately 7-9 minutes. (If the timing works well, you may be able to use the noodle pot for this step instead to cut down on cleanup, but a skillet/sauté pan will probably work better.)
- While the veggies are cooking, prepare the Lo Mein sauce by adding the teriyaki sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, honey, fresh chopped ginger, minced garlic, ground ginger root, and cornstarch to a small bowl. Whisk until combined.
- Once the veggies are steamed (or sautéed), add them to the empty noodle pot with the Lo Mein sauce. Cook on medium for 1-2 minutes, enough to coat the veggies and thicken the sauce.
- Add the noodles back into the pot and mix together with the sauce-coated veggies. Turn the heat off and serve with the chicken!
