To not go insane during this quarantine, I’ve tried my best to keep cooking and baking creative recipes, get outside or workout every day and try to not get too addicted to Netflix. Tough times, but we’ve got this!
Now if you’re in the mood for something new, delicious and flavorful to make for dinner, then you most certainly need to try this easy chicken green bean stir fry — it’s packed with all the veggies, a deliciously slightly sweet sesame ginger sauce and roasted cashews for a little added crunch. HOLY YUMMY.
Ingredients in chicken green bean stir fry
Not only is this chicken green bean stir fry paleo-friendly, but it’s also gluten free, grain free and dairy free, which means it basically ticks every box out there. Personally, I love that this healthy stir fry is packed with veggies and comes together in about 30 minutes, making it a great weeknight dinner option. This recipe is also great for mixing and matching what you have in your fridge; don’t be afraid to get a little creative with what you have on hand! To make this green bean stir fry you’ll need the following:
For the sauce:
- Low sodium soy sauce (or coconut aminos)
- Garlic
- Coconut sugar or brown sugar
- Sesame oil
- Rice vinegar
- Fresh ginger
- Sesame seeds (or tahini)
- Red pepper flakes
- Arrowroot starch or cornstarch
For the stir fry:
- Ground chicken (or turkey)
- Garlic powder
- Salt and pepper
- Carrots
- Onion
- Red bell pepper
- Green beans
- Roasted cashews
- Green onion for garnish
What’s unique about this healthy chicken green bean stir fry is that it uses ground chicken or ground turkey instead of diced chicken breast (or thighs) so that it can simmer in that delicious sauce. It’s seriously better than takeout! Of course, if you only have chicken breast on hand, you can use that too.
What kind of sauce goes in this chicken green bean stir fry?
Typical stir fry sauces are made of a few different components: soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, a sweetener like sugar or honey, and plenty of seasonings. They also usually contain a thickening agent such as cornstarch or arrowroot starch to make the perfect sauce.
In this chicken and green bean stir fry I make a lip-smacking delicious sesame ginger sauce using sesame oil, coconut sugar, lots of fresh ginger & garlic, sesame seeds, arrowroot starch and a red pepper flakes for a delicious kick of sweet and spicy flavor. I love how it generously coats all the chicken and veggies perfectly and still leaves a little extra for serving over a bed of rice.
How to make chicken and green bean stir fry
- First you’ll make your stir fry sauce: in a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, water, garlic, coconut sugar, sesame oil, rice vinegar, fresh ginger, sesame seeds, red pepper flakes and arrowroot starch (or cornstarch). Set aside.
- Then, add sesame oil to a large pot over medium heat. Once the oil is hot add in your ground chicken and season with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Quickly begin to break up the meat and cook until no longer pink. Once it’s cooked, transfer the chicken to a bowl and set aside. Keep heat in your pan.
- In the same pot, add more sesame oil. Add in your veggies: chopped onion and sliced carrots and cook for 2-4 minutes until onions begin to soften. Next add in your green beans and bell pepper and cook, stirring frequently, for an additional 6-8 minutes or until green beans are slightly tender but still have a bite.
- Add the cooked ground chicken back to the pot with the veggies. Immediately turn the heat to low and add in the sauce. Cook for an additional 2-4 minutes over low heat until the sauce begins to thicken.
- Serve with brown rice or quinoa for a healthy dinner. Garnish with roasted cashews, a few extra sesame seeds and scallions/green onions. Enjoy!
How do you cook green beans for stir fry?
In this easy stir fry recipe you’ll cook your green beans in a pan with the bell pepper for just about 6-8 minutes. This allows them to absorb flavors while still maintaining a nice crunch, which is essential. The key is to not overcook your green beans! You’ll know when your green beans are cooked when they turn a beautiful bright green color.
Out of green beans? Try these veggies instead:
If you’re out of green beans or aren’t a fan, feel free to sub in any or a combo of the following:
- broccoli
- asparagus
- snow peas
- mushrooms
- bell peppers
What to serve with stir fry
This stir fry is delicious as is, but I recommend serving it over brown rice, quinoa or cauliflower rice for a delicious filling nourishing meal.
See how to make the chicken green bean stir fry:
I know you’re going to love this chicken green bean stir fry. Please let me know if you make it by leaving a comment and rating the recipe below. I’d love to hear from you and it helps encourage others to make the recipe too! Enjoy xo.
30 Minute Sesame Chicken Green Bean Stir Fry
Healthy sesame chicken green bean stir fry made with gorgeous veggies like fresh green beans, carrots and red bell pepper all cooked in a flavorful sesame ginger sauce. This easy chicken and green bean stir fry takes just 30 minutes to make for a paleo, protein-packed weeknight dinner that's great for meal prep. Enjoy as-is or with rice, cauliflower rice or quinoa!
Ingredients
- For the sauce
- 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce or coconut aminos
- ⅓ cup water
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar or brown sugar (or sub 1 tablespoon honey)
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil (preferably toasted sesame oil)
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds (or sub 1 tablespoon tahini)
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ tablespoon arrowroot starch (or sub cornstarch)
- For the chicken
- 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil (preferably toasted sesame oil
- 1 pound lean ground chicken (or ground turkey)
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- Freshly ground salt and pepper
- For the veggies
- ½ tablespoon toasted sesame oil (preferably toasted sesame oil)
- 2 large carrots, thinly sliced
- 1 white onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 12 ounces fresh green beans, trimmed and cut in half
- For serving
- ½ cup roasted cashews, chopped
- Scallions (green part of the onion only)
- Extra sesame seeds
Instructions
- First make your stir fry sauce: in a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, water, garlic, coconut sugar, sesame oil, rice vinegar, fresh ginger, sesame seeds, red pepper flakes and arrowroot starch (or cornstarch). Set aside.
- Add ½ tablespoon sesame oil to a large pot and place over medium heat. Once oil is hot add in ground chicken and season with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Quickly begin to break up the meat and cook until no longer pink. Once cooked, transfer meat to a bowl and set aside. Keep heat in pan.
- In the same pot, add ½ tablespoon sesame oil. Add in chopped onion and sliced carrots and cook for 2-4 minutes until onions begin to soften. Next add in green beans and bell pepper and cook, stirring frequently, for an additional 6-8 minutes or until green beans are slightly tender but still have a bite. Add cooked ground chicken back to the pot with the veggies. Immediately turn the heat to low and add in the sauce. Cook for an additional 2-4 minutes over low heat until the sauce begins to thicken.
- Serve with brown rice or quinoa for a healthy dinner. Garnish with roasted cashews, a few extra sesame seeds and scallions. Serves 4.
Recipe Notes
If you are serving with rice, I suggest starting the rice first before you begin cooking, especially if it’s brown rice as it takes about 40 minutes total to cook.
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
76 comments
I made this for dinner last night. It was easy, family-friendly and delicious! Will definitely make again 😊
So happy to hear that!
Sounds delicious! Do the calorie counts per serving include rice or quinoa, or is it just for the veggies & chicken with the sauce?
Made this for dinner tonight and my family and I LOVED it. So easy! Much faster and healthier than take out. Will definitely make again!
Perfect! So happy to hear that!
It definitely took me more than 30 minutes to make – more like an hour. We both loved it; hubby even went back for seconds. This one is a winner and will go into the rotation for nights when I have a little extra time or when I plan ahead and prep the veggies the night before.
Everyone’s prep times can be a bit different, but the next time you make it I bet it’ll be much quicker! So glad you both loved it 🙂
Absolutely loved this recipe. It reminded me of lettuce wraps (minus the lettuce) and stir fry combined into one. I agree with the below comments of building in a little extra time to prep the veggies if you think you might need it.. However, overall it was simple and delicious!
Absolutely! So delicious. And yes, everyone’s chopping speeds are a bit different 🙂
I made this tonight with what I had and turned out excellently. I followed the sauce recipe exactly. Veggies I used broccoli, asparagus and red bell pepper. I found I had to steam the broccoli for a few minutes and then added the pepper and asparagus to get it to be the texture I prefer. Topped with toasted peanuts. Turned out awesome! Would definitely make again!
Perfect! Love those veggie additions 🙂
One of the best dinners we’ve had in a while! My kiddos even ate all the green beans, which they normally won’t eat. Thank you!!!!
Made this tonight, absolutely delicious! Quick and easy to make. Very flavorful and packed with veggies and lean meat! We will be making this again soon!
So happy you loved it!
This recipe was delicious. Shared some with my daughter and family who all loved it and my mom who also loved it. Basically it appealed to 3 year olds and a 90 year old. I have to admit that i did not have the seasame oil in my kitchen so didn’t use it but the fresh ginger and garlic made it. I did use great beans although I worried they might be too crunchy but they cooked well. I used carrots and onion and added some zucchini cause I had it as well as some red pepper. It was delicious and I will make it again. Oh I used ground turkey. Thanks for the great recipe!
Amazing! I’m so glad everyone enjoyed. This one’s great for customizing with what you have on-hand, too 🙂
So simple and delicious! Have made it three times in the last month!!
Amazing! So happy to hear that!
This was so delicious! Subbed turkey for chicken and used coconut aminos. Also, I only used 1TBS of coconut sugar. The family loved it. Thank you for the recipe.
Perfect! So glad the whole family loved it 🙂
Delicious! This dish would even be good with broccoli (in addition to the string beans)
Absolutely! Love broccoli in here 🙂
Loved this so much I had to comment! Made with ground turkey and added mushrooms and extra bell peppers. The sauce is awesome!
Perfect! So glad you loved it!
Great recipe! I used broccoli and substituted ground ginger and garlic for the fresh and it worked out! My daughter loved it too. Cashews on top make it even better.
Perfect! So glad you both enjoyed 🙂
This has been my favorite recipe of quarantine! I’ve made it every week and plan to just start doubling it this week. Such great flavors and love that it’s also healthy. Yummm!
LOVE this! I’ve made it several times and it’s just as good each time, and a great way to clean out vegetables from the fridge!
So happy to hear that! Absolutely 🙂
What would you recommend for a veggie version, other than tofu?
Chickpeas would be great!
Would these freeze well to make and heat up later?
The veggies and chicken should freeze just fine! I’d recommend cooking the rice once you’ve thawed the chicken & veggies and are ready to eat.
Your recipes are always amazing, and this one is no exception. The sauce was the star of the show, and I loved how versatile the recipe is. We used crockpot shredded chicken instead of ground chicken and didn’t even season it – just tossed it with the sauce and cooked to thicken it. So tasty and easy! I look forward to trying it with ground chicken soon.
Perfect! Love that idea. Glad you enjoyed!
I don’t know why I’m so shocked that this recipe was so good, but it was SO GOOD! Also, i don’t know if I’ve ever had ground chicken before. Lol. I always use ground turkey. Anyway! Can’t say enough about how easy and delicious this was. Thank you!!
Amazing! So happy you loved it! And ground turkey would work just as well in here 🙂
Amazing recipe! Cook it all the time. I’ve used ground turkey instead of chicken since it’s sometimes easier to find and it’s just as delicious!
Perfect! So happy to hear that!
We had tons of fresh veggies in the fridge to use, so I basically focused on using the sauce on this recipe. The sauce was better than what I expected!!! So happy with how it turned out. My family was very satisfied. Definitely will make again when I have tons of veggies sitting in the fridge or I go to the Friday Market again. Thanks for coming up with very tasty items.
Perfect! This one’s a great way to use up extra veggies 🙂
Perfect weeknight meal – easy, nutritious, and delicious.
Absolutely! On repeat at our house 🙂
A great Tuesday night meal for our family! Loved the sauce so much! Didn’t have any red peppers, so subbed mushrooms. It was perfect that way! I had never toasted sesame oil before and it really added to the flavor of the dish. I had always felt before that sesame oil smelled so good in the bottle, but never added to the flavor of the dish. I just needed to toast it! Thanks for that tip!
Perfect! So glad it was a hit 🙂 and yes, the toasted sesame oil is amazing!
Loved this recipe! I haven’t had much luck making Asian inspired dishes at home, but this one was a success! The sauce had such a great flavor and tasted great after soaking into the ground turkey I used. Can’t wait to eat the rest of it for lunch today!
So glad you liked this one! The best leftovers 🙂
This recipe is fabulous!!! We have just had it for dinner and it is definitely becoming a regular dish in our household! I love how it is packed with veggies, and still satisfies our take-out cravings! I would love more similar recipes! Thanks so much 🙂
So happy to hear that! And noted 🙂
I made this recipe last night – it was SO good. My picky children ages 8 and 9 really enjoyed this. So great to find recipes that the whole family enjoys.
I did not have low sodium soy, so I used a little less than 1/3 of a cup and added some water. Great choice as it was the perfect amount of flavor without tasting salty!
Thank you for the easy, healthy, family friendly recipe!
Perfect! So happy to hear that!
This is delish!! Perfect for a quick veggie packed meal prep dish. Will definitely make again!
Absolutely! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
I made this recipe for my family and they absolutely loved it! It was simply moreish as we say in the UK! Will definitely be making again.
Amazing! So glad everyone loved it 🙂
This was an easy and delicious weekday meal. Ive never used ground meat in a stirfry type entree. It works well! Very yummy.
Super easy! So happy you liked it!
We made this for supper tonight and it was a big hit! Easy to make with ingredients we regularly have on hand. My husband and I spiced ours up with a spicy oil. My 5 year old liked it and my 2 year old ate two bowls. Will definitely make again.
Love that! Such a great family dinner 🙂
This dish was so delicious and so easy. I am making it for the second time. My son is so enjoying it! and I love it too.
Recipe was easy to follow and the meal turned out wonderful!
This recipe is on regular rotation for our family! My husband, 3 year old and I all love it and I’ve made it multiple times. Super quick and easy to make and love that it’s full of veggies.
very easy and flavorful! perfect weeknight dinner 🙂
made this with tofu instead of chicken and it was phenomenal. my husband craves chinese takeout once a week and he said this did the trick for him! so delicious.
Love that idea! So delicious.
Easy and delicious.
Perfect dinner! 🙂
Eating this right now, and boy o boy I’m In love with all of the flavors in this recipe. I only did 1 teaspoon brown sugar and left out the rice vinegar (don’t like the smell of it) Will definitely make this for a family gathering one day in the future
Perfect! Glad you enjoyed!
We LOVE this recipe and make it at least 2-3x/month!
So happy to hear that!
Delish!! Tonight was one of those nights in which I didnt know what to make so came in here searched stir fry with green beans(what I had in my freezer) and I happened to have all the ingredients!! I always keep peppers, carrots and onions in my fridge, ambitious kitchen is my life savior!!! My only swaps were using olive oil and frozen green beans which I cooked on the microwave then added it with the chicken. Perfect recipe for a quick dinner and will be making it for meal prep! Thanks Monique!!
I made this because I was looking for an easy dinner that included a veggie, protein, and carb; it did not disappoint! The flavors in the sauce are delicious and so much better than bottled sauces. I love that the veggies are versatile. The only thing that didn’t work out was the sauce thickening at the end. I’m not sure what happened, but the rice soaked it the extra sauce and it was still delicious!
This is a go-to in my house when we need something quick, healthy, but flavorful and yummy. Absolutely love this recipe!
Such a great weeknight dinner! Glad you love it 🙂
I have made several AK dishes and loved them all! This one, however, takes the cake! So easy to modify and make your own – I added snow peas, mushrooms, and celery, in addition to the green beans and bell peppers, and used leeks instead of onions. I’m not a fan of cooked carrots so I used butternut squash – it “squished up” a bit, but the entire dish was absolute amazing! My husband loves all the dishes I have made from AK, but this one he could not stop raving about! Definitely a 10/10, but honestly, so are all the other dishes I have made! ‘Can’t thank Monique enough for sharing such deliciousness!