Soy-Free Chicken Fried Rice (MSPI)

As I've mentioned here and here, when I was eating dairy/soy-free (MSPI diet), I had to completely revamp our meals. Several of the dairy/soy-free dinners were so good that they have stuck around as staples in our rotation. This Chicken Fried Rice is one of them. You can serve it with soy sauce on the side if you don't have a sensitivity to soy, or if there are members of the family that can tolerate it.  Bob usually puts soy sauce and sriracha sauce on it.

Authentic fried rice is made from day-old rice. Since I usually serve the Spicy Honey-Brushed Chicken Thighs with rice, I make a double batch so I have leftover rice for this recipe the next night.

I prefer chicken thighs for this recipe but have used chicken breasts before and they work too; it's just a matter of personal preference.

Soy-Free Chicken Fried Rice (MSPI Friendly)

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons Canola oil, plus extra for cooking chicken
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
salt and pepper to taste
coarse salt
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons water
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed
4 cups cooked rice (day-old leftover rice is best)

Directions:

1. Drizzle Canola oil in a large nonstick skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper and place in pan "pretty" side down.  Cook until starting to brown and then flip to finish cooking completely. Remove chicken to a plate until cool enough to handle, shred, and set aside in a warm place.  Set pan aside for use in step 3.

2. In a smaller (medium-sized) nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-low heat; swirl to coat pan. In a small bowl, lightly beat together eggs, 2 teaspoons water, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Pour into pan; cook, pulling in egg from edge of pan, until set, about 2 minutes. If desired, carefully flip over for a few seconds. Transfer to a plate; when cool enough to handle, cut into strips.

3. In large skillet, heat remaining tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add scallions and garlic; cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add rice; season with salt to taste. Cook, stirring often, until very hot, about 5 minutes. Add vinegar, peas, eggs, and shredded chicken; cook until very hot, about 2 minutes.

Source: Adapted from Martha Stewart

Fancy Chili

After being here in St. Louis for about 3 weeks now, I'm finally beginning to feel more at home. Even though I grew up in STL, our new place is about 25 minutes north of my parents' house, and it's an adjustment from the big city living we had in downtown Chicago. It's so quiet here! Initially we had a hard time getting to sleep without the 'sounds of the city' - sirens, arguments, gun shots (j/k . . . kind of . . .).

I started my new job last week, and it's an adjustment as well. It's never easy to start at a new place and to learn new things that take me out of my comfort zone. One downfall is that, aside from a few quick glances at Google Reader, I can no longer read cooking blogs at work . . . at least for the next couple of months. I probably should have never done that at my old job though!

Getting back in the swing of cooking is difficult as well. By the time I get home from work, I'm exhausted! Bob was a good house-husband last week and made dinner every night. This week, I'm making more of an effort. My mother-in-law sent me Trisha Yearwood's cookbook "Home Cooking" as a surprise after seeing her on "The View." I love to get surprises in the mail :) There are a ton of great-looking recipes in this book - nothing fussy or complicated, just good, crowd-pleasing food.

Although it's summer and the temps here in St. Louis are in the '90's, I couldn't resist making this Fancy Chili, mainly because Trisha serves it over rice, and it's actually not much like chili at all. There's very little liquid, and it consists of a hearty yet healthy meal filled with veggies. I'm sure you can add a number of vegetables to the dish. I omitted the beans because I always do, and I used ground turkey of course. This was a fantastic dinner! You certainly don't have to serve this over rice, but I really liked it that way. The sour cream topping and fresh, sliced green onions on top added to the flavor and texture. I can't wait to take the leftovers to work for lunch!

Fancy Chili

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup chopped green onion

1/2 pound lean ground beef or turkey

2 tablespoons hot chili powder

1 28-ounce can (or 2 14.5-ounce cans) fire-roasted diced tomatoes

1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained (optional)

1 medium bell pepper, cored, seeded, and diced

4 carrots, peeled and grated

1/2 teaspoon brown sugar

Pinch of salt, more to taste

For serving: sliced green onion, sour cream, cooked rice

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and green onions, and cook for about 1 minute.

2. Add the ground meat and cook until browned, about 5 minutes.

3. Stir in the chili powder until fully combined.

4. Add the tomatoes, beans, bell pepper, carrots, brown sugar, and salt. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to low.

5. Cover and simmer the chili for 15 minutes.

6. Adjust salt if necessary, and serve over white rice with a dollop of sour cream and garnish of sliced green onions.

Source: Adapted from Home Cooking with Trisha Yearwood

Red Chili Chicken and Rice

Monday I posted about Pioneer Woman's delicious salsa, so today I will post a recipe that I served to go with the salsa (wait, shouldn't it be the other way around?!)

I first saw this Rick Bayless recipe on Elly's blog. Rick Bayless is a celebrity in Chicago, and most Chicagoans are proud to have such a talented and decorated chef practice his craft here. I've been to Frontera several times, on one visit Rick was there meeting with the staff. I've also been to his Mexican street food restaurant XOCO, and he happened to be there quality control taste-testing the drinks! I'd love to try Topolobampo sometime. Last time I called they were booked for 6 weeks!

I quickly bookmarked this recipe when Elly posted it, and then I saw that Annie recommended it as well, so I knew I'd love it. It's been on my 'to make' list for a long time, but for some reason I kept moving it. I finally realized I had all the ingredients one night and went for it - it's fabulous!!! I have a weird relationship with black beans, so I left them out. The ingredient list is simple, but the components combine together perfectly to make a very tasty dish. If you want to make this a little less healthier, you could even top it with some cheese and sour cream - not sure what Mr. Bayless would say about that, but he'll never know!

Red Chile Chicken and Rice

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon canola oil

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

1 1/4 Tablespoons ancho chili powder, divided*

1/2 medium onion, large dice

1/2 cup rice

2 cloves garlic, minced

3/4 cup chicken broth

7.5 ounces black beans, drained and rinsed (optional)

2 Tablespoons chopped green onions, roots and wilted outer leaves removed before chopping

salsa, for serving

*I only had regular "chili powder" and did some Googling but couldn't find a definitive answer as to what types of chiles are in it . . . so I just used it and it was great.

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a medium heavy pot (with a lid) over medium-high heat. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken breast with salt and 1/2 Tablespoon of the ancho chili powder. Place chicken in the hot oil and brown on each side, 2 - 3 minutes. Remove to a place, leaving behind as much oil as possible.

2. Add the onion and rice to the pot. Stir for several minutes, until the rice turns from translucent to opaque. Add the garlic and the remaining 3/4 Tablespoon ancho chili powder. Cook one minute, and then add the broth and salt to taste. Stir well.

3. When the mixture comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover, and cook for 10 minutes.

4. Cut the chicken breast into 1" pieces. Add them to the pot along with the beans, if using. Recover and cook 12 minutes longer.

5. Sprinkle the green onions and test a kernel of rice. It should have no more than a hint of chalkiness in the center, in which case you place the cover back on, remove it from the heat and let stand 5 - 10 minutes. If it's not cooked, cook for another 5 minutes or so (at this point I added a tad more chicken broth because I think my pan was too big and the added surface area caused more of the liquid to evaporate; if you use the right size pan this should be fine).

6. Fluff the mixture with a fork and serve with salsa.

Source: Adapted from Elly Says Opa!, also featured on Annie's Eats, originally from Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless

Mexican Rice

I have a major backlog of posts waiting, but I'm trying to spread them out. This one is from November! :)

One of my favorite things about Mexican restaurants, other than the chips and salsa, is the rice. Usually rice and beans are served with your entree and people tend to push them to the side. Not me. I always ask to substitute the beans with extra rice, and if I don't eat the rice at the restaurant, I will take it home. I love that it's, for lack of a better word, dry - meaning that it's not saucy but still very flavorful. I've never really tried to make Mexican rice at home (other than Rice-a-Roni!) so I decided to give it a shot, especially since this recipe is originally from Cook's Illustrated. I was a little nervous during the cooking process that there would be too much liquid, but that wasn't the case at all. The end result was a rice that rivals the best Mexican restaurant!

Mexican Rice

Ingredients:

2 ripe tomatoes, cored and quartered

1 medium white onion, peeled, trimmed and quartered

2 cups long grain white rice

1/3 cup Canola oil

4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed through a garlic press

3 medium jalapenos, ribbed, seeded, and minced

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1 Tablespoon tomato paste

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro (optional)

1 lime, cut into wedges for serving

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F and move a rack to the middle position.

1. Process tomatoes and onions in the food processor until smooth and thoroughly pureed, about 15 seconds, scraping down the bowl if necessary. Transfer the mixture to a liquid measuring cup; you should have 2 cups. If necessary, spoon off excess or add water so that the volume equals 2 cups.

2. Place the rice in a large fine mesh strainer and rinse under cold running water until the water runs clear, about 1 1/2 minutes. Shake rice vigorously in a strainer to remove all excess water.

3. Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed oven-safe Dutch oven or straight-sided saute pan with a tight-fitting lid over medium-high heat, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the rice and fry, stirring frequently, until it is golden and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium; add the garlic and minced jalapenos; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 1/2 minutes.

4. Stir in pureed tomatoes and onions, chicken broth, tomato paste, and salt; increase heat to medium-hight and bring to a boil. Cover the pan and transfer to the oven; bake until the liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, 30 to 35 minutes, stirring well after 15 minutes.

5. Stir in cilantro, if desired, and serve with lime wedges.

Source: Adapted from Annie's Eats, originally from Cook's Illustrated.

Cilantro Coconut Rice

There's not much else to say about this rice expect that it was so, so, so good! I'm not kidding - I really loved it. I used Jasmine rice instead of basmati. I love the sweetness of the coconut in this rice and the freshness of the ginger, jalapenos, cilantro, and scallions. Pair this with Coconut-crusted Chicken and you've got a very coco-nutty meal :)

Cilantro Coconut Rice

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups (10 ounces) basmati (or jasmine) rice

scant 1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut

1 Tablespoon finely chopped peeled fresh ginger

2 Tablespoon finely chopped fresh jalapeno, including seeds

2 Tablespoons vegetable/Canola oil

2 cups water

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup packed fresh cilantro

3 scallions, chopped

Directions:

1. Wash rice in several changes of cold water in a bowl until water is almost clear. Soak rice in cold water 30 minutes, then drain well in a sieve. (I did not do 30 minutes...maybe 10).

2. Spread coconut in a skillet and toast over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until pale golden; watch carefully so it doesn't brown too much or burn. Cool completely.

3. Cook ginger and jalapeno in 1 Tablespoon oil in a 4-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring, until chile is softened, about 2 minutes. Add rice and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes.

4. Stir in water and 1/2 teaspoon salt and bring to a boil, covered. Reduce heat to low and cook, covered, until rice is tender and water is absorbed, 12-15 minutes.

5. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 5 minutes. Fluff rice with a fork and transfer to a large bowl.

6. While rice cooks, pulse together coconut, cilantro, scallions, and remaining Tablespoon oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a food processor until finely chopped.

7. Add cilantro mixture to cooked rice and stir gently until combined well.

Source: Adapted from APPLE A DAY, originally from Gourmet, found on Epicurious.com