Enjoy healthy takeout at home with this Whole30 and Keto Instant Pot Sesame Orange Chicken. Sugar and MSG are replaced with nourishing bone broth, keto-friendly sweetener, and orange essential oil! Serve over low-carb cauli-rice, zoodles, or spaghetti squash!

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Want your favorite Chinese take-out at home? Without a bunch of added sugar or MSG?

This Keto Instant Pot Sesame Orange Chicken recipe will satisfy your craving — and you can cook this with thawed OR frozen chicken!

Why We Make Takeout At Home

Because of our rural location, we don’t have access to a variety of cuisines.

It’s basically bar-and-grill where we live. No Mexican. No Italian. And, no Asian.

We’ve learned to make do with what we cook at home and have added all sorts of ethnic recipes to our repertoire.

If we want sushi, we make it.

Fajitas? We make ’em.

Chicken Alfredo? That, too.

This Keto Instant Pot Sesame Orange Chicken is just like the sticky-sweet orange chicken you find in Western Chinese restaurants — but with NO questionable ingredients, like MSG. 

The sauce and chicken are both conveniently made in your Instant Pot. So, you can have your favorite Chinese takeout at home!

Wait… oranges have carbs. How is this keto?

I’m so glad you asked!

Typical Sesame Orange Chicken recipes are made with orange juice and sugar. It makes a heck of a yummy sticky-sweet sauce, I’ll give you that.

But, those ingredients aren’t necessary!

The liquid component — which orange juice would provide — is replaced by nourishing bone broth. 

And the orange flavor? Orange essential oil!

Yes, it is perfectly safe to cook with orange essential oil. Despite it being an anti-microbial, cleansing oil, it’s health benefits are actually destroyed with heat. So, it’s not going to upset your gut or make you poop orange or anything. 😉 😛

Make sure to choose high quality essential oils for cooking. Don’t use the cheap oils just because there’s not going to be any health benefits. Cheap oils are often diluted with other chemicals — like carcinogens, perfumes, and phthalates. 

You wouldn’t put those things on your body (hopefully), so don’t add them to your food. I have used Spark Naturals pure essential oils for years now and couldn’t be more confident about cooking with them. Save 10% on your Spark Naturals order with my discount code NOURISHING10 + get FREE shipping on all orders over $25!

With that said, I LOVE using essential oils in cooking! And this Keto Instant Pot Sesame Orange Chicken is keto/low-carb/THM:S because of orange essential oil!

You can enjoy a traditionally sugared and high-carb takeout meal without the carbs and sugar! WIN!

How to Make this Instant Pot Sesame Orange Chicken Whole30-friendly

Since added sweeteners, including keto sweeteners and stevia, aren’t Whole3o-approved, you’ll have to tweak this recipe slightly.

Omit the sweetener and bone broth. Use an equal amount of pure orange juice instead.

Pure orange juice = oranges you juiced yourself or straight-up OJ, no added sugar or other stuff.

If you still want to pump up the orange flavor, go ahead and add the orange essential oil, too!

Side Dish Suggestions:

For Keto/Paleo/Whole30:

• zucchini noodles (zoodles)
• spaghetti squash noodles
• Miracle noodles
• cauliflower rice — here’s how to save $ and make your own!

For Gluten-Free:

• any of the above suggestions
• jasmine rice
• basmati rice
• sprouted brown rice

How to Make Keto Instant Pot Sesame Orange Chicken — From Frozen!

Yep, you can make this Keto Instant Pot Sesame Orange Chicken from frozen chicken breasts. Here’s how:

Whisk together the sauce ingredients in the Instant Pot: avocado oil, coconut aminos, tomato paste, keto sweetener, minced garlic and ginger, bone broth, black pepper, and red pepper flakes.

Then, place the frozen chicken right into the pot. It’s ok if the chicken breasts aren’t submerged. The cook time for frozen chicken is 25 minutes on high pressure. 

When the pot beeps, immediately release the pressure and use some tongs to remove the chicken breast. Then, cut them into bite-sized pieces.

Before you place the chicken back into the pot, add the orange essential oil. You may wish to cook down the sauce a bit, and add some arrowroot powder to thicken it. Adding arrowroot is optional and not necessary if you need to stay keto.

How to Make Keto Instant Pot Sesame Orange Chicken — With Thawed Chicken

If your chicken is thawed, go ahead and cut it into bite-size pieces.

Whisk together the sauce ingredients, per the instructions. Then, add the cut chicken and pressure cook for just 10 minutes.

If you wish to thicken the sauce, use a slotted spoon to remove the chicken from the pot and set it aside on a dish.

Add the orange essential oil, additional stevia if you want more sweetness, and arrowroot, whisking until the sauce thickens. Finally, add the chicken back to the pot and stir to coat it in the sauce.

Here’s the full recipe — with instructions for using thawed or frozen chicken!

*Don’t forget! If you’re going to cook with essential oils, cook with the best. Save 10% on your Spark Naturals order with my discount code NOURISHING10 + get free shipping on all orders of $25 or more!

4.34 from 3 votes

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Keto Instant Pot Sesame Orange Chicken (paleo, Whole30, nut-free) — Includes from frozen directions, too!

Enjoy healthy takeout at home with this Whole30 and Keto Instant Pot Sesame Orange Chicken. Sugar and MSG are replaced with nourishing bone broth, keto-friendly sweetener, and orange essential oil! Serve over low-carb cauli-rice, zoodles, or spaghetti squash!

CourseMain Course, Main Dish

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Servings 6 servings

Calories 218 kcal

Author Rebecca Hansen

Ingredients

• 2tablespoonsavocado oilor coconut oil
• 2/3cupcoconut aminosor fermented soy sauce
• 3tablespoonstomato paste
• 1/4cupLakanto Whiteor Dietz Sweet or 1/4 cup raw honey (not keto) - omit for Whole30
• 4clovesgarlicminced
• 2inchesfresh gingerpeeled and grated
• 1/2cupbone brothomit for Whole30, sub 3/4 cup orange juice
• 1/2teaspoonblack pepper
• 1pinchred pepper flakes
• 1-1/2poundschicken breastcut into bite-size pieces
• 10 to 20dropsorange essential oil
• 1/32teaspoonpowdered steviaoptional, if extra sweetness is desired (omit for Whole30)
• 2tablespoonsarrowroot powderoptional, not keto
• 2tablespoonssesame seeds

Instructions

1. In the stainless steel insert of your Instant Pot, combine the avocado oil, coconut aminos, tomato paste, sweetener, garlic, ginger, bone broth, pepper, and pepper flakes. Whisk together.

2. If thawed, cut chicken into bite-size chunks and add to the sauce mix. If frozen, place whole, frozen chicken breasts into the sauce.

3. Place the lid on the Instant Pot, making sure the seal is in place. Close the vent

4. Press the "Manual" or "Pressure Cook" button and adjust the time to 10 minutes (if thawed and cut into bite-size pieces) or 25 minutes (if frozen and whole chicken).

5. When the pot beeps, immediately release the pressure.

6. If you cooked whole chicken breasts, remove them from the sauce and cut into bite-size pieces. Then, return to the sauce.

7. Press the "Saute" button and bring the sauce to a simmer.

8. Add orange essential oil and stir. Taste and add more if desired. You may also add a bit of stevia if more sweetness is desired.

9. If you want a sticky, thick sauce, whisk in 2 tablespoons of arrowroot powder. This is not keto, however, and you can skip this step if you are keto.

10. Finally, stir in sesame seeds and serve over cauli-rice or spaghetti squash or zoodles (for keto) or over basmati rice (not keto).

Nutrition Facts

Keto Instant Pot Sesame Orange Chicken (paleo, Whole30, nut-free) — Includes from frozen directions, too!

Amount Per Serving (4 ounces)

Calories 218Calories from Fat 63

% Daily Value*

Fat 7g11%

Saturated Fat 0.9g6%

Polyunsaturated Fat 1g

Monounsaturated Fat 4g

Cholesterol 55mg18%

Sodium 779mg34%

Potassium 88mg3%

Carbohydrates 10g3%

Fiber 0.7g3%

Sugar 0.7g1%

Protein 27g54%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Will you enjoy this healthy, Whole30, keto takeout meal at home? Do you use essential oils in your cooking?