Our healthy twist on this take-out favorite tastes even better than the original recipe!
Most of us can agree: Chinese take-out is delicious! And while it tastes good, unfortunately it’s not very good for you. Luckily, there are almost always ways to put a healthy spin on your favorite recipe! One way to do this is to make sauces and dressings from scratch. Another great, calorie-reducing method is to opt for baking over frying, anytime that you can. This teriyaki chicken bake does both of these things, and the results are delicious!
Homemade is Healthier!
The first step to making this delicious teriyaki chicken bake is to prepare your own sauce. Bottled sauces often come with a long list of mysterious ingredients, so making your own allows you to know and control exactly what goes into your food and body. Our homemade teriyaki sauce is made from a combination of six simple ingredients: Low-sodium soy sauce, honey, water, ground ginger, garlic powder, and cornstarch. Once your sauce is ready, set it aside to prepare the bake!
For this recipe, we briefly cook the chicken in one tablespoon of sesame oil to give the outside a beautiful golden color. This method greatly reduces the amount of fat and calories that are present in traditional recipes where the chicken is fully submerged in oil. Next, the onion and garlic are added into the pan to enhance the flavor of the chicken!
After allowing the garlic and onion to meld with the chicken for about 5 minutes, you add your cooked brown rice and veggies into the pan with the chicken. Stir in the sauce until all of the ingredients are mixed well and evenly coated. Finally, pour the mixture into your prepared baking dish. Bake at 400 degrees fahrenheit for about 30 minutes, until your chicken is cooked through and the veggies are the perfect texture!
Let’s Take a Look at the Nutrients!
Any healthy, well-rounded meal always contains a few specific things. First, you should always aim to get at least a little bit of protein in every meal. This particular dish offers 22 grams of lean, muscle-building protein! Getting sufficient amounts of protein throughout the day will help keep you full and satisfied!
Speaking of feeling full and satisfied, each serving of this dish also offers 43 grams of carbohydrates. This macronutrient often gets a bad rap, but it is essential for long-lasting energy. In this particular dish, the majority of the healthy complex carbs come from the brown rice. If you need energy for hours, you need complex carbs!
The final major macronutrient to acknowledge is fat. Each serving of this teriyaki chicken bake contains just 5 grams of fat, which is pretty low. Especially when you compare it to the high-fat takeout alternatives.
Overall, this well-rounded bake comes in at 305 calories per serving. It’s an excellent option for a healthy dinner any night of the week. Plus, the leftovers always take just as amazing. Enjoy!
Teriyaki Chicken Bake
Ingredients
For the Sauce
- 1/2 cup soy sauce low-sodium
- 1/4 cup honey (add 1/4 more honey for a sweeter sauce)
- 3/4 cup water cold
- 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
For the Bake
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 pound boneless and skinless chicken breasts cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1/2 cup yellow onion diced large
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 2 teaspoons ginger fresh, minced
- 1 cup broccoli florets small
- 1/2 cup carrots shredded
- 1 cup snow peas cut in half
- 3 cups brown rice cooked
Instructions
For the Sauce
- In a small saucepot, combine the soy sauce, honey, 1/2 cup of the water, ginger, and garlic powder. Bring to a boil. While the sauce is boiling, combine the last 1/4 cup of water and corn starch in a small bowl. Whisk well and gradually pour into the boiling sauce, stirring the sauce constantly. Reduce to a simmer, and continue to stir the sauce until thickened. Remove from heat and set aside.
For the Bake
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9X13 inch casserole dish with non-stick spray and set aside.
- In a large skillet, heat the sesame oil on medium heat. Once hot, add the chicken and cook until golden on the outside. Add onion and garlic then saute until onions soften, about 5 minutes.
- Add the rice and the remaining ingredients. Stir in the sauce, until all ingredients are coated, then pour into prepared baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and veggies tender, but not mushy. Serve immediately.
Nutrition Information
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What do you think? Are you going to try this teriyaki chicken bake? If so, be sure to share your thoughts with us in the comment section below!
If you enjoyed this delicious Asian-inspired meal, we think you might also like to try these tasty take-out alternatives:
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Looks delicious. how much is a serving size
A serving size is 1 1/2 cups!
I am very excited about trying this recipe. It’s on the menu for next week!
Awesome! Let us know how it turns out!
I would rather use chicken breast cup up into bite sized pieces. Do you think that would work?
Hi Susan! Yes, cut chicken breast would work perfect for this recipe! Make sure to let us know how your Teriyaki Bake turns out!
I have an allergy to sesame oil, what’s a healthy alternative?
Lisa, Use whatever oil works best for you, i.e. olive oil or canola oil. 🙂
Is this 14sp a serving? Or for all 6 servings?
Stacy, Per serving.
Had it this evening…delicious…chopped up chicken breasts, did not have ground…worked very well…next time I shall had some heat…enjoyed by all!
I started the new weight watchers freestyle program will you any recipes in the future that will include the new program
Hi, Gloria. Yes, we plan to. We are also in the process of updating the points for our current recipes.
Ok I did just tweak this recipe a little bit. I substituted cauliflower rice for the brown rice. And added mushrooms and japanese bean sprouts with the shredded carrots. Very tasty and highly recommend the cauliflower rice!
Jason, YUM, thanks for the tips. We’ll definitely be trying your suggestions. 🙂
Great recipe. Tastes awesome. Just a note, the ingredients list calls for boneless and skinless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch chunks, but the recipe states ground chicken. I figure it can be made either way, just a small panic the first time I made it.
Erin, The original recipe had ground chicken but was later changed to chicken cubes. I’ve updated the recipe. 🙂
Just curious but where do the 12g of fat come from ? Seems high for chicken and not much oil.
Barb, Primarily from the chicken. However, there are only 3g saturated fat.
I made this over the weekend and it was delicious. It will definitely go into our recipe rotation. One question: it’s all cooked prior to going into the oven, and no additional things are added. The casserole basically looked the same when it went in the oven and when it came out. What does the baking step add and can it be skipped?
Melissa,
It can be skipped. 🙂
Is there any way to bring the sodium down a bit? Is the sesame oil a culprit, or should I just cut back on the low sodium soy sauce? I plan to stretch it with mushrooms. Thanks in advance. Since my husband’s heart attack two months ago, your recipes have become invaluable to our successful life style change.
Hi Nancy, the sodium in this recipe would come from the soy sauce. Sesame oil does not have any sodium. You can cut down on the soy if you’d like and up some of the other flavor enhancing ingredients like ginger, garlic, and onion!
I found it easier to have my family help themselves to the rice and add the chicken, veggies and however much sauce they wanted. When I followed the recipe, the result came out over cooked and mushy. The texture was great when I made it again without mixing everything together and baking. The baking doesn’t really make it healthier because the chicken and vegetables have already been cooked in oil in the pan. However, the sauce to this recipe is awesome and I am adding it to our monthly menu! I think next time I’ll make it even easier by using frozen mixed vegetables or steaming the chicken and veggies.
Jessica, Thanks for the feedback and tips! 🙂
Ware a family of 2. I really want to try this but will the leftovers be good and OK heated in the microwave without spoiling texture or flavour?
Hi Jane, you should be fine to reheat in the microwave. You can also cover left over casserole in an oven safe dish and reheat in the oven for about 20 minutes at 350.
Would the leftovers freeze well. It is only my husband and I and we don’t have big appetites. I would love if someone could break down this recipe for 2-4 servings.
Hi Lynne, this recipe will freeze just fine!
We can you use cauliflower rice?
Hi Toni! Yes, you can definitely use cauliflower rice instead of rice, but I would suggest making the dish without the cauliflower rice, then serve it over the cauliflower rice after it is baked. The dish bakes for 30 minutes at 400 degrees, and that could make your cauliflower rice too mushy. Enjoy!
When I put this in my recipe builder, I’m coming up with only 8 smart points. Big difference. Where is the 14 coming from?
Hi Cory, this recipes should only list 7 points, it has been updated.
Is there a way to substitute the soy sauce? I cannot have soy.
Coconut aminos is a great soy substitute.
Made this for the first time. Only change I made was to make the rice separate. The sauce is good but way too sweet for my taste. I will cut back on the honey and just a bit on the soy sauce next time. Other than that, it’s a great dish
Glad to hear you enjoyed the recipe!
Can you make this ahead and do the bake step to heat?
Yes, you can definitely make ahead!
I reduced the rice to 2 cups and used fresh ginger throughout. Very good!
Great tips, Katie!
One of my favorites! I do use Cauliflower Rice. Great for leftovers as well!
Jill, Great idea. Thanks for the tip.
This was ohmygosh good! Little bit of prep involved but so worth it! Can substitute frozen peas for pods! It is definitely a do over recipe! 👍👍
If you want to add a little “heat” to this recipe, what would you use? I can’t wait to try this. I love ginger in recipes. Thank you!
Janet, Try using 1/2-1 teaspoon each chili powder and cumin, and possible 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon.
Thank you Gale so much.
You are very welcome! 🙂
Can this recipe be made in a wok
as a stir fry?
Carol, A wok should work fine!