Tag Archives: chicken

Stone Fruit Chicken-Rice Salad

I don’t know why it doesn’t occur to me to always have precooked rice, lots of fruits and/veggies, and chicken on hand to make a hodge podge rice bowl. These kinds of meals are always exactly what tastes so good to me and what leaves me feeling satisfied. I do have a ridiculous love for rice so I try not to eat too much of it (hence why it’s never in the house). If I could figure out how to control myself, maybe I could actual have certain foods on standby. But rice with chicken and fruits or veggies along with an Asian flavored sauce or a light vinaigrette is usually my perfect little meal. Which explains why I was so drawn to this Stone Fruit Chicken-Rice Salad.

Grilled chicken, nectarines, brown rice, cherries, scallions, almonds, and mint are mixed together before being tossed with a simple vinaigrette of olive oil, lemon and Dijon. Served with whatever kind of green you like (I used arugula), this salad is a perfect lunch or even a light which takes advantage of summer’s fruits. I look forward to nectarines, peaches, berries and especially cherries each year so as soon as I saw cherries in the store, I grabbed a huge bag no matter the cost. Substitute this salad with rotisserie chicken, turkey, blueberries, corn, spinach, zucchini, basil, tomatoes or whatever your heart desires. No matter what you throw in, you won’t go wrong.

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Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Sprinkle both sides of chicken evenly with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Place chicken on a grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 5 minutes on each side or until done. Let stand 5 minutes. Chop chicken.

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Combine oil, rind, juice, and mustard in a large bowl, stirring well with a whisk.

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Add chopped, cooked chicken, nectarines, and remaining ingredients; toss well.

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Additions: None

Omissions: None

Substitutions:

  • Arugula
  • Sliced almonds

Overall Rating: Love It

Source: Cooking Light magazine

Mu Shu Chicken Lettuce Wraps

I hope your weekend was a little better than mine! The sky was perfectly blue and sunny and all I wanted was to enjoy the beautiful weather by either going to the beach or a baseball game. Instead, I spent my entire weekend indoors at my house because I had car problems and didn’t do much of anything but sit home alone watching several baseball games go into extra innings on Friday, and again on Saturday, and again on Sunday. Luckily, on Sunday morning I was able to get to the grocery store because I was really looking forward to making these Mu Shu Chicken Lettuce Wraps all weekend.

An Asian-inspired sauce made up of soy sauce, hoisin, rice vinegar and sherry is added to garlic, ginger, rotisserie chicken and packaged coleslaw and heated briefly before being spooned into lettuce cups and topped with scallions and nuts. I used broccoli slaw instead of regular coleslaw which stayed pretty crunchy even after being heated and the scallions add a fresh mild onion flavor. I also used peanuts instead of cashews because I had peanuts on hand but any nut will work or you can leave it out altogether. Because this dish uses precooked chicken, it comes together really quickly making this an easy weeknight dinner. If you are looking for something light, fast, low-carb and very tasty, this is a dish for you.

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Combine soy sauce, sherry, hoisin, and rice vinegar in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add garlic and ginger to pan; sauté 30 seconds.

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Add soy sauce mixture and coleslaw; cook 1 minute, stirring frequently. Add chicken and 1/4 cup onions to pan; cook 1 minute or until coleslaw just begins to wilt.

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Divide chicken mixture evenly among lettuce leaves; sprinkle evenly with remaining scallions and nuts.

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Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:

  • Boston lettuce
  • Broccoli slaw
  • Peanuts

Overall Rating: Love It

Source: Cooking Light magazine

Sweet BBQ Chicken Salad

Happy May Day! Summer will be here before we know it so if you find yourself craving a salad, isn’t it good to embrace it? Craving salad doesn’t happen to me often but when it does, I appreciate salad so much.  I was in Tampa visiting friends last weekend and even though we didn’t go crazy with what we ate, we did manage to eat lots of Bombay chicken salad, crackers and cheese.  Oh and wine.  Lots and lots of wine.  Since I’ve been pretty much depriving my body of the food I’ve been craving lately, why not give in to the craving for a salad? This Sweet BBQ Chicken Salad satisfied my craving for salad without being too salad-y or too bad for me (like most salads are these days).

Bright green leaf lettuce, fruit, red peppers, and rotisserie chicken are tossed together for a bright dish.  A dressing made of bottled barbecue sauce, fresh orange juice, tangy mustard and red wine vinegar is drizzled to taste, making this the lightest and freshest barbecue chicken salad I’ve ever had.  My grocery store isn’t carrying peaches or nectarines just yet so I used a crisp Macintosh apple instead (use any fruit you like).  A little dusting of reduced-fat cheddar cheese tops the whole salad but you could leave it off (or load it on) if you like. The barbecue isn’t too sweet, despite the title of the recipe, and a little goes a long way. The combination of the sauce, chicken and fresh fruit and vegetables provides everything I like in a salad so I was happy this made a lot.  I ate it for days.

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In large bowl, whisk together barbecue sauce, orange juice, mustard, vinegar, salt, and black pepper.

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To same bowl, add lettuce, chicken, nectarines, and red pepper, tossing to coat and divide among 4 serving plates. Or, layer ingredients onto plates and drizzle with barbecue sauce mixture.

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Sprinkle with cheddar.

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Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:

  • Apple for nectarine

Overall Rating:  Love It

Source:  Good Housekeeping magazine

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