Whole30 Guyanese Style Chicken Chowmein is a great way to enjoy chicken chowmein in a grain free, wholesome and delicious way. It's no secret that I love chowmein, so naturally while on Whole30 I would want to enjoy some compliant chowmein. Truth is this is how I make chowmein for myself even when I am not on a round because I life a gluten free life. If you are new to my blog welcome and please read this earlier and traditional chowmein recipe where I explain why chowmein is part of Guyanese cuisine (disclaimer: it is not a whole30 recipe). If you've been enjoying my recipes for some time and not sure what all this whole30 talk is about, please read my post The Whole30 and me.
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Put all the flavor in the chicken
Since this dish is made with squash noodles it is important to add all your marinades, seasoning and flavor to the chicken. I like to season my chicken with dried and fresh herbs and let it marinate for at least 30 minutes before I start cooking. When I'm making chicken chowmein I prefer boneless, skinless chicken thighs. It cooks up relatively quickly and there is little chance it will overcook and become dry which is a win win for me. I sauté the chicken until it's fully cooked and all the juices cook down, then add the veggies and cook for about another minute or two. Cooking on high heat brings this dish together quickly. A wok or Kaharee (Guyanese word for an a type of wok) is perfect for this dish.
Bring on the veggies!
Typically when I make chicken chowmein I like to keep the vegetables simple, just some julienne carrots, scallions and bell peppers will do for me, but you can make it your own. But then I have my chowmein with a side salad. So really maybe I should just start putting the veggies in the chowmein. The more veggies the better, right? Add some bora (chinese long bean–they are whole30 compliant), some pok choy / bok choy, mushrooms or other compliant vegetables.
What makes this Guyanese Style Chicken and Chowmein Whole30?
Chowmein is a noodle dish, but in this version I am using yellow (summer) squash as the noodles. I used the Vegetti Spiralizer to turn my squash into spirals. I've had this simple spiralizer for many years and it is so easy to use and clean up. I bought it from our local pharmacy during one of my whole30 rounds. Check it out here on my amazon affiliate link. To learn more about the amazon affiliate program, check out Shop My Favs.
The final step in making is adding the spiralized noodles. I leave this step for absolute last because I don't want the noodles to get soggy. After I add the noodles, I sauté for about a minute then I remove from the heat and remove the chowmein from the pan. If you are using a cast iron pot like I am in the picture above, the noodles will continue to cook even after you remove the pot from the heat and it will become soggy and your dish with be watery and mushy. I garnish my chowmein with lots of fresh scallions. I love the flavor and slight crunch that it adds to the dish.
The Printable Whole30 Chicken Chowmein Recipe:
Printable Recipe Card
Whole30 Guyanese Style Chicken Chowmein
Ingredients
- 2 lbs of boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 inch cubes
- 6 yellow summer squash, spiralized
- 1 large red bell pepper julienned
- 2 large carrots julienned
- 4 green onions julienned
- Additional vegetables if you prefer
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons coconut Aminos
- 1 teaspoon of tomato paste whole30 compliant
- 1 tablespoon of onion powder
- 5 cloves of garlic grated
- 1 teaspoon of grated fresh ginger
- 1 teaspoon of Chinese 5 spice
- A pinch of cayenne pepper
- 2 tablespoon of olive oil
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine chicken, onion powder, grated garlic, grated ginger, coconut aminos, tomato paste, salt, Chinese 5 spice and cayenne pepper
- Let marinate for at least 30 minutes
- Heat oil on high heat in a wok, large frying pan or pot suitable for stir-frying
- Add the seasoned/marinated chicken and sauté until fully cooked and all the chicken juices have cooked down
- Then add the julienned veggies reserving a handful of green onions for garnish
- Sauté for about 2 minutes
- Finally add the spiralized yellow squash and sauté for a minute or two, then remove from the heat and serve
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