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    Home » Recipes » Gluten-free Quick Weeknight Dinners

    Gluten-Free Chang's Spicy Chicken (Copycat)

    Published: Apr 27, 2021 · Updated: May 3, 2021 by Katie | Wheat by the Wayside · This post may contain affiliate links, through which I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

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    A bed of rice on a plate with pf Changs spicy chicken piled on top, sprinkled with green onions.

    You'll want to devour this delicious Gluten-free Chang's Spicy Chicken! A copycat recipe that features fluffy, battered gluten-free chicken nuggets, delicious all on their own, doused in a special sweet and spicy sauce! This easy-to-make recipe comes together in under an hour!

    A bed of rice on a plate with pf Changs spicy chicken piled on top, sprinkled with green onions.

    When we can get out and about, P.F. Chang's is one of my favorite restaurants to visit for a safe gluten-free meal! They take special precautions and I have never had an issue of getting sick when eating there. While they have several options to choose from on the gluten-free menu, my go-to is always the Gluten-free Chang's Spicy Chicken! Chang's Spicy Chicken comes with crispy bites of breaded chicken, doused in a sweet and spicy sauce and it's all served over a bed of rice. It is so delicious!

    Since we don't live near a P.F. Chang's, I have to make my own when the craving hits! Enter this copycat recipe! This meal has quickly become a favored dinner request in my house. The awesome thing is it's pretty easy to make and you can make it start to finish in less than an hour. Serve it over a bed of instant pot steamed rice!

    Key Ingredients & Substitutions

    A few variations of this sauce were tested and all were delicious, but one stood out as the closest to the original. Also, there are a few ingredient swaps you can make to adjust the recipe according to what you have on hand. All of that will be noted in the recipe.

    Ingredients laid out on a white wooden surface.
    • Broth, Orange Juice, or Water: The sauce with broth or water tastes closest to the original but the version with orange juice was super tasty too!
    • Sriracha or Chili Paste: These can be used interchangeably. Add more or less depending on how spicy you like your spicy chicken!
    • Rice Vinegar: White vinegar will also work here.
    • Gluten-free Flour: Use your preferred 1:1 blend. This recipe has been tested with Namaste Perfect Flour, King Arthur Measure for Measure, and Cup4Cup. They all worked fine but Cup4Cup got pretty gloopy, extra water was needed to thin the batter to the proper consistency.

    Making Chang's Spicy Chicken

    Step 1: Get your rice started.
    Step 2: Dice the chicken and dredge with cornstarch.
    Step 3: Make the batter for the chicken by whisking together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and water.

    Pro-tip! It should be thin like pancake batter (see picture below). Add more water if needed.

    Whisking batter, batter dripping from whisk, sauce in a small saucepan, golden fried chicken bites on a plate.

    Step 4: Make the sauce.
    Step 5: Dip the chicken pieces in batter and fry the chicken bites. You can fry them in a pan or use a deep fryer. Oh man, are those chicken bites good all on their own!
    Step 6: Combine some chicken bites with sauce and serve over steamed white rice. Top with a sprinkle of green onions.

    Pro-Tip! Toss portions of chicken together with the sauce as you serve it. This way the chicken will stay crispier, even as it sits than if you combine everything together at once.

    A bed of rice on a plate with pf Changs spicy chicken piled on top, sprinkled with green onions.

    More Gluten-free Copycat Recipes

    • Best Homemade Gluten-free Cheez-It Crackers Copycat
    • Gluten-Free Sweet Fire Chicken - Panda Express Copycat
    • Gluten-free Hawaiian Rolls
    • Gluten-Free Broccoli Cheddar Soup

    Thank you for stopping by! I hope you enjoyed this recipe! Find even more great gluten-free recipes here!

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    Thank you for your support! ♡

    A bed of rice on a plate with pf Changs spicy chicken piled on top, sprinkled with green onions.

    Gluten-free P.F. Chang's Spicy Chicken

    Katie | Wheat by the Wayside
    Make the classic sweet and spicy dish, Gluten-free Chang's Spicy Chicken, from P.F. Changs right at home with this copycat recipe! This recipe is quite easy to make with fluffy battered gluten-free chicken nuggets and a special sauce!
    5 from 3 votes
    Pin Recipe Print Recipe Save Saved!
    Prep Time 15 mins
    Cook Time 30 mins
    Total Time 45 mins
    Course Main Course
    Diet Gluten Free
    Servings 8 servings
    Calories 366 kcal
    Prevent your screen from going dark.

    Ingredients
      

    • 2 cups white rice

    Breaded Chicken Bites

    • 1.5 lb chicken breast
    • ¼ cup cornstarch,, plus extra for dusting chicken.
    • ¼ cup 1:1 gluten-free flour blend
    • ½ teaspoon baking powder
    • Pinch salt and pepper
    • ½ cup water,, plus more if needed to thin batter to pancake batter consistency.

    Spicy Chicken Sauce

    • 2 Tablespoons oil
    • 5 cloves garlic,, minced
    • ¼ cup diced green onion,, plus extra for garnish
    • 1 cup chicken broth,, water or orange juice
    • ¼ cup brown sugar
    • 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar,, or white vinegar
    • 1 teaspoon sriracha or chili garlic sauce
    • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
    • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
    • ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
    • 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
    • 1 Tablespoon water
    • Oil for frying

    Instructions
     

    • Cook rice using your preferred method. Prepare the chicken and sauce while the rice cooks.

    Prep the Chicken

    • Dice the chicken breast into 1-inch pieces and lightly dust it with cornstarch.
    • Prepare the batter by whisking together ¼ cup cornstarch, gluten-free flour, and baking powder.
    • Whisk in the water. The batter should be thin like pancake batter. Add more water if needed to reach this consistency.* Set aside.

    Make the Sauce

    • In a small saucepan, heat the oil. Sauté the green onions and garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Take care not to burn the garlic.
    • Pour in the chicken broth (water or orange juice), brown sugar, rice vinegar, chili garlic sauce (or sriracha), sesame oil, salt, and red pepper flakes. Simmer for a few minutes.
    • Whisk together the cornstarch and water to make a slurry. Add to the saucepan and whisk.
    • Allow the sauce to simmer until thick and then turn the heat to low to keep warm, whisk occasionally.

    Cook the Chicken

    • Heat oil in a deep non-stick pot or deep fryer. Use at least enough oil to cover the chicken.
    • Dip a few chicken bites at a time in the batter. Fry in batches until golden brown and chicken reaches an internal temp of 165°F.
    • Remove the chicken bites to a paper towel lined plate. Sprinkle with salt if desired.
    • Continue to fry chicken in batches until all of the chicken is cooked.
    • Toss individual portions of the chicken with some of the sauce in a small bowl.** Serve the sauced chicken over a bed of steamed white rice. Garnish with green onion, if desired.

    Notes

    *Cup4Cup was the only flour that required more than ½ cup of water. It got very gloopy, but adding extra water allowed it to be thinned properly. The batter should resemble pancake batter.
    **Rather than soaking all of the chicken in the sauce at once, tossing the chicken a little at a time keeps the uneaten chicken crisper while it sits.  

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1gCalories: 366kcalCarbohydrates: 52gProtein: 22gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 54mgSodium: 343mgPotassium: 418mgFiber: 1gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 67IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 48mgIron: 1mg
    Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and star rating below!

    More Gluten-free Quick Weeknight Dinners

    • Quick and Easy Gluten-Free French Dip Sandwiches
    • Gluten-Free Tortellini Soup with Spinach: Easy 30-Minute Recipe
    • Gluten-Free Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
    • Gluten-Free Chili with Beef and Beans

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    1. Amy

      May 03, 2021 at 6:22 am

      Can you use a fry daddy to cook the chicken?

      Reply
      • Katie | Wheat by the Wayside

        May 03, 2021 at 7:16 am

        Yes! That’s what I use!

        Reply
    2. Niamh Aspell

      July 29, 2021 at 5:31 pm

      5 stars
      At first taste I thought "this is pretty good" and then I kept wanting more! It's so addictive. I used a mix of orange juice and chicken stock. The only gluten-free flour I had was buckwheat. I was afraid it might make it taste weird but it was actually fine! Thanks for the recipe!

      Reply

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    Katie Olesen headshot.

    Hi, I'm Katie! I'm the blogger behind Wheat by the Wayside. I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease in 2018 and have been following a strict gluten-free diet ever since. The goal of WBTW is to share tried and tested, easy, and delicious gluten-free recipes to give you confidence in the kitchen! 

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