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Leftover Tuesday: Butter Chicken With a Twist

I had some leftovers that needed to be used up:  cooked rice and a cooked chicken breast.  The tomatoes on the counter were ripening quickly.  It had been a while since I’d made a curry.  All these things inspired me to make Butter Chicken.  This took little time because of the leftovers. To save time, you could buy a roasted chicken breast from the deli. Watch for the “twist!”

1 small onion, chopped

1/2 pepper, chopped

4 small Roma tomatoes, chopped

1 c. tomato sauce

1/4 c. water

1 cooked chicken breast, chopped

1/4 c. tub-style cream cheese

Splash or two of 10% cream

1 T. curry powder or an Indian spice blend

Brown onion and pepper. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce and water.  Bring to a simmer on medium low.  Cook for 10 minutes.  Stir in cream cheese (the “twist”) and chicken.  Continue to heat until the cream cheese is fully incorporated into the tomato mixture.  Remove from heat, add the curry powder/Indian spice blend and splash or two of cream.  Serve with rice. Naan bread would also be good. Serves 2 – 3.

 

Chunky Chicken Chili with Lentils

We’ve been on a bit of a lentil kick here at Chronic in the Kitchen. Lentils are great meal extenders and a good substitute for beans (which my husband doesn’t care for) in chili’s and stews. They are high in fiber and protein and a package of dry lentils is relatively inexpensive to buy.

2 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
1 c. dry lentils
1 28 oz. can tomatoes
1 can green chilies
1 each onion and pepper, chopped
1 T. dried cilantro
2 – 3 T. Club House Tex Mex Seasoning

Tip: Buy pre-cooked chicken breasts (or use leftover chicken or turkey) and pre-chopped onions and peppers

Cook the chicken breasts in advance – I did it in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes. While that is cooking, cut the vegetables (if not using pre-chopped ones) and brown them a bit. Add the lentils, chilies, tomatoes and spices and cook until the lentils are tender, about 30 minutes.

When the chicken breasts are cooled, cut them into chunks and add to the chili. Heat through. Serves about 6.

Sizzling Fast Chicken Fajitas

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut up
juice of one lime
1/3 c. oil
2 T. Club House Tex Mex Seasoning
1 tsp. each garlic powder and cumin
1/2 tsp sugar
1/3 c. diced onions

Combine all in a large Ziploc and allow to marinate in the fridge for several hours.

To prepare:

Slice one pepper and onion. Brown peppers and onions a bit in a frying pan, add in chicken with marinade and cook thoroughly. Serve with flour tortillas for wrapping and the usual mexican accompaniments (salsa, sour cream, chopped lettuce, guacamole, shredded cheese.) Ole!

Tortilla Soup

I am breaking the 30 minute stove-to-table “rule” with this recipe but it is truly yummy and healthy.

For the soup:

 

7 c. chicken broth

1 med. yellow onion, diced

2 carrots, peeled and diced

2 stalks celery, diced

½ bell pepper, seeded and diced

1 potato, peeled and diced

¼ c tomato paste

1 bay leaf

2 tsp dried garlic powder

1 T. each dried cilantro and oregano

salt and white ground pepper to taste

1 zucchini diced

2 medium tomatoes, diced [Chronic in the Kitchen time saving substitution:   use a 14 oz. can of diced tomatoes instead]

2 medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts, poached and shredded [Chronic in the Kitchen time saving substitution:  2 barbequed chicken breasts from your local deli, skinned and shredded]

 

for presentation:

Baked Tortilla Chips

1 ½ c. shredded Jack cheese (use low fat if watching fat)

8 – 10 slices avocado, optional

 

In large pot combine chicken broth through to oregano.  Add salt and pepper to taste and bring to a boil; simmer 25 minutes covered.  Add zucchini, tomatoes and shredded chicken breast pieces and continue to simmer about 10 minutes.  Remove from heat.   To serve, place tortilla chips, crushed a bit smaller if necessary, into individual bowls, cover with shredded cheese and ladle in soup.  Top with sliced of avocado.   8 – 10 servings

Blueberry Goat Cheese Salad

Fast and easy and wonderful if it is too hot too cook.

Divide among two individual containers a bunch of mixed greens, romaine lettuce (torn) or baby spinach.
Add 1/4 c. each of crumbled blueberry goat cheese (such as Pampered Goat), toasted sliced almonds, and fresh blueberries.
Serve with your favorite salad dressing (I used a Raspberry Vinaigrette.) Makes two and is really, really yummy. This would also be awesome topped with cooked, chopped chicken breasts.

Rosemary Chicken

This has little preparation but needs extra time to marinate and cook.

8 chicken thighs, boneless and skinless

1 large onion, chopped into quarters

2 lemons, quartered

4 cloves garlic (or more)

2 – 3 T. olive oil

1 T. rosemary

1 tsp. salt

¼ tsp pepper

 

Place all ingredients in large Ziploc bag.  Squeeze lemon quarters to release juice and include them in the bag.  Seal bag and mix well, ensuring that the chicken has been well coated.  Leave chicken to marinate for at least 4 hours or overnight in fridge.  Preheat oven to 350.  Pour all contents of the Ziploc onto a baking sheet or casserole dish and put in oven.  Cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until chicken is cooked through.  Delicious with mashed potatoes or brown rice and a salad.

Clean Out the Fridge Chili

We needed to clean out our fridge so I decided to make chili.  Some of these measurements are approximate. I didn’t have any yellow onions, but you could add 1 onion, chopped and brown it with the pepper, celery and mushrooms.

1/2 yellow pepper, chopped

3 celery stalks, finely chopped

approximately 6 – 7 mushrooms, sliced

1 c. grape tomatoes, halved

1 cooked spicy chicken sausage, chopped

1/2 lb. cooked ground beef

1 19 oz. can tomatoes

1 19 oz. can lentils, rinsed and drained

1 – 1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice

1/2 c. each salsa and ketchup

a lot of chili powder went in by accident – I’m guessing about 3 T.

1 tsp. each (approximately) cumin, garlic powder, dried onion bits, italian seasoning blend and ground pepper

shake of cinnamon

1 tsp. cocoa powder

Brown the pepper, celery and mushrooms. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for about 30 minutes.  Serves 4 – 6.

A Word About Chicken and Salmon

Chicken breasts and salmon filets or salmon burgers are my go-to items when I am not up to cooking. Each of these items take about 20-25 minutes to cook.

Frozen boneless skinless breasts take approximately 25 minutes to fry from frozen. Add a bit of oil to a frying pan, place breasts in a single layer, cover and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes. Then turn over and cook an additional 10 minutes or until juices run clear. Serve with buns and frozen vegetables that have been cooked in the microwave, or raw baby carrots.

Alternatively, purchase a box of frozen pre-cooked, breaded chicken breasts. These re-heat in about 20 minutes in the oven at 425 F. Turn over after 10 minutes.

A favorite easy meal for us is salmon burgers and fries. Use low-fat fries. Preheat oven to 400. Place salmon burgers and fries on a cookie sheet. Cook in oven 10 minutes, then turn fries and burgers over, return to oven and cook another 10 minutes. Remove salmon burgers and keep warm. Return fries to oven and cook another 10 minutes or until crisp. Serve with buns, raw vegetables and dip or cooked frozen vegetables. *Salmon Burgers are good with plum sauce!

Tip of the Day – Managing the Ick of Food Storage and Prep

I’m not terribly fond of putting my hands on raw meat. We often buy chicken in bulk. I usually use a fork to transfer the chicken pieces from the package to the freezer bags.

To mix ground beef patties or meatloaf, it is often suggested one use one’s hands to combine the ingredients. I don disposable nitrile gloves for this, such as those found at home improvement stores.

Easy Thai Soup or Salad

I haven’t had this for a meal for a long time but sure enjoyed it today.
1 package Thai Kitchen Rice Noodle Soup
About 1 cup frozen vegetables
Chopped leftover cooked chicken, beef, shrimp, tofu

Bring 2 cups water to a boil; add noodles, seasoning packets and frozen vegetables and cook approximately 3 minutes. Stir in leftover protein and let it heat a bit. Pour into a bowl and enjoy.

You can also eat this as a salad by cooking the noodles according to package directions, then draining and rinsing them with cold water. Add seasoning package, fresh vegetables and protein and a little olive oil and lemon juice, or salad dressing of your choice. Serves one.

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