As often as I can, I like to cook and eat gluten-free (limit the eye-rolling!). I'll discuss in another post what changes I saw in my body and energy level after removing the ingredient for a 30 day challenge, but for today's description, I had no bloating in my stomach and I never felt tired between 2-4pm, Living without gluten does not mean I live without carbs. I do limit my intake but I make sure to get the nutrient from other sources, such as quinoa like I have shown today.
I've never been the type of person who can just eat a plain chicken breast. In my opinion, chicken breast is dry, bland and pretty much torture for me to put down. However, this food is packed with protein, low in fat and very affordable. Basically, I'm going to have to figure out a way to eat it if I want to live healthy and still have money in my wallet.
One of my tricks is to marinade the breasts for an extended period of time. You can marinade for as little as 30 minutes or overnight. I like to start the process in the morning so that the chicken has been soaking up the flavors for at least 8 hours. I love to make my own marinade because I have control over spice, ingredients and I just like to make it myself! Now, if you are new to cooking or don't really like the sport, there are plenty of marinades in your grocery store that you can pick up. For today's recipe, I would recommend something that says Thai on the bottle.
I have to pay credit where credit is due. I got this meal from another blogger but I made some changes to it for my needs/kitchen ingredients. Here is the link to the inspiration recipe: http://www.thebellevieblog.com/thai-chicken-coconut-quinoa-bowls-2/
Ingredients
Marinade
1/2 cup light coconut milk
1 lime
1/4 cup Sriracha
2 tablespoons peanut butter
3 Tablespoons honey
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
2 Large Chicken breast, sliced
Quinoa
1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed
1 cup light coconut milk
1 Tablespoon lime juice
Salad
2 cups deep green salad mix
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1/2 Bell pepper
Directions
In a large bowl, or gallon sized ziplock bag, combine all the ingredients for the marinade, except for the chicken and mix well.
Add the chicken and marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
To cook the quinoa, rinse it in a mesh strainer well and add it to a medium-sized saucepan, followed by the coconut milk, over medium-high heat.
Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes, turn off the heat, remove from burner and allow it to sit for 5 more minutes.
Remove cover, fluff it up, squeeze in the lime juice, toss to coat.
Heat a large skillet (I used my cast iron pan) over medium-high heat and melt 1 teaspoon of coconut oil. Add the chicken strips, reserve the marinade, and cook them 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove from the pan and set aside.
In a small saucepan over medium high heat, add the reserved marinade. You're going to cook out the chicken and reduce it down to a glaze by bringing it to a rolling boil, stirring occasionally, until the liquid reduces to about 1/4 cup and is thick and shiny.
To assemble the salad, toss the romaine and spinach together in a large bowl. Add the mango, cooked chicken, and the coconut quinoa. Sprinkle on some fresh cilantro, and drizzle the desired amount of glaze over the top. Divide onto plates (or bowls!) and serve!