Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Clementine Chicken with Vegetables and Quinoa

Here's another original recipe, and this one turned out great, if I do say so myself!  This was the first time I have even tried Quinoa, and I am officially a fan!  This dish takes about 15 minutes to prep and another 20 to cook, so it's great for a busy weeknight.  I prepped the vegetables while defrosting the chicken in the microwave (something that I am firmly against, but when you forget to thaw your protein, what else can you do?)
Heres the ingredient list.  As usual your mileage may vary according to taste:
2 (6oz) Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts, pounded flat
2 tsp corn starch, separated
6 Cloves Garlic, peeled, smashed and minced
1 Cup medium sliced Onion
2 Cups Broccoli florets
3 Clementine Oranges, peeled, separated into segments
1 Medium Red Pepper, cut into thin strips
1/2 Cup White Wine
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground coriander
2 1/2 tsp reduced sodium Worcestershire Sauce
1 cup uncooked Red Quinoa (you may substitute brown rice)
2 cups water
Non Stick Cooking Spray
Start off by putting the cup of Quinoa and the 2 cups of water in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to low.  Simmer for the rest of the process, about 20 minutes.



Spray a large sautee pan with cooking spray and brown the chicken breasts, about 5 minutes a side, till the juices run clear.  Season as desired with salt and pepper, but remember we will be adding Worcestershire sauce later, and that will have plenty of sodium for you!
When the chicken is just cooked, remove from the pan and cover to keep warm.
Immediately add the garlic, onions and peppers to the dry pan, stirring around for less than a minute.  You want to brown the garlic but not burn it!
Add the wine, broccoli and spices, simmer for a few minutes...
...then the Clementines...
...and just before plating, stir the remaining tsp of corn starch into the Worcestershire sauce, and stir into the vegetable mix.  Let simmer for the remaining minute while plating the Quinoa and Chicken
Mound 1/2 the Quinoa in the center of the plate, slice the chicken and place on top of the Quinoa, then surround with 1/2 of the vegetables, finally splitting the remaining sauce between the plates.

Delicious!!
As a little side note, I had intended to use Soy Sauce and grabbed the wrong bottle.  While It didn't hurt anything, next time I will try Soy, and maybe a little hot chili or sesame oil.
Also,  while I am now hooked on Quinoa's nutty, crunchy flavor and texture, If the idea of a new grain scares you, you can easily serve this up on your favorite rice.  Quinoa and Brown Rice are very close nutritionally.
Below are the numbers!

Nutritional Info
  • Servings Per Recipe: 2
  • Amount Per Serving
  • Calories: 655.3
  • Total Fat: 7.4 g
  • Cholesterol: 102.7 mg
  • Sodium: 221.4 mg
  • Total Carbs: 85.7 g
  • Dietary Fiber: 13.4 g
  • Protein: 57.9 g

1 comment:

  1. Sounds really great. Did you know that Quinoa is a great source of protein? Next time skip the thawing of the chicken :)

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