Chicken, chicken, chicken. We all seem to be eating lots of chicken. I don't know about you, but I get board with it pretty quickly. One night I had this lonely chicken breast staring back at me as if it was challenging me......waiting for me to do something creative with it. So this recipe is what I came up with. I love the orange chicken we get at the Asian restaurant so I thought this might be good. It's nowhere near as good as the restaurant but it'll due for a quick week night meal.
Serves 2
Ingredients:
3/4 cup brown jasmine rice
Zest of one orange
1/2 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed
2 Tbsp soy sauce or liquid amino
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 Tbsp coconut oil
1/4 of a red onion, thinly sliced
pinch of red pepper flakes
1 large chicken breast, cut into bite sized pieces
Sea Salt
Pepper, freshly cracked
Snow Peas, a large handful, enough for 2 servings
Sesame Seeds
Rinse the rice well and allow to drain. In a small sauce pan heat 1 1/2 cups of water and a 1/4 tsp sea salt, add the rice. Bring up to a boil, then lower the heat and cook very slowly, slightly covered, for 35 minutes. Turn off the heat, stir, and allow to sit, fully covered, for 10 minutes before serving.
To make the sauce: Zest the orange, juice the orange and put into a small bowl, add the soy sauce and cornstarch. Whisk until the cornstarch is fully dissolved.
In large sauce pan or wok, heat the oil, add the onions and pepper flakes. Saute for 30 seconds. Add the chicken, salt and pepper. Stir fry for approximately 4 minutes. Add the sauce and snow peas. Cook and stir until the sauce has thickened and the peas are done, approximately 2 minutes.
Serve in a bowl, brown rice down first, then chicken mixture over the top. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
This is by far the easiest recipe I have ever posted. I've made this for a picnic and it works out really well. If you need to take a dish to a get together you can put this together in minutes. It's fast! And what's so surprising is that it tastes so darn good. Shhhh.......don't tell anyone how fast it is. Let them think you spent some time putting this together.
You can use a grill to cook these or simply use a grill pan on top of the stove.
Make sure your shrimp are cleaned, peeled and deveined. I leave the tails on to act as a handle to hold.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds large shrimp
3 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp honey
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, minced
Combine the mustard, honey, lemon juice and garlic in a small bowl. This will be your glaze. Add the shrimp and toss well to coat. Allow to sit in this for at least 15 minutes then saute or grill for 1 to 2 minutes per side and they are done.
You can eat them right away or you can allow them to cool and them put them into a container with a top and put them in the cooler for the picnic. They will hold well for a couple of hours.
Grilled asparagus is perfect the way it is, but I thought this idea of adding some mustard sounded interesting. It adds a different flavor and makes the vegetable very moist and flavorful. I think it's nice for a change, and I love mine on the mustardy side, its got a little kick. This pares well with some grilled meat.
I also don't like washing a lot of dishes so I try to make it all on one dish. I use a platter so I can mix the dressing then add the asparagus and toss it to coat. I then allow it to sit and marinate until I am ready to cook it. You can cook it on the grill or use a grill pan. You want some high heat so you can cook it quick, and you want those beautiful grill marks.
Ingredients:
1 pound asparagus
2 tbsp mayonnaise
2 tbsp mustard, grainy or Dijon
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 garlic clove, mined ( or garlic salt)
Salt
Pepper
I do not even measure when I make this. I just eyeball it. I pour it all on the platter, mix it with a spoon, then put the asparagus on the platter and toss it to coat well.
Allow it to sit for a least 30 minutes, then grill for a few minutes. You can allow it to sit for a little bit afterward and serve it a room temp. This is a good staple for the summer grilling season.
