improv

Posted by: gns | on June 7, 2012

I have completely dropped the ball on interesting (or any!) recipes for WeHangsDay. But today, I got a little inspired. The man and I have been uber busy for the past few weeks, so Monday through Thursday feel like our ‘laid-back’ days. Which means I have been a really punk cook of late. In fact, the exec chef of my restaurant completely believed I couldn’t cook. Great confidence boost. But we didn’t want to buy a ton of groceries because we’re in Boston for the weekend. So we checked the cupboards. And here’s what we had to work with …

Quinoa.

Chicken.

Oy.

Our original idea was chicken served over quinoa with zucchini and black beans. But I modified it a bit with a recipe I found online, plus some insight from my exec chef (yes, the non-believer ~ he converted!).

Quinoa with Chicken & Veggies

What you Need:

Part I:

3 star anise

All-Spice (2-3 tbsp)

2 cinnamon sticks

2 cups dry quinoa (rinsed)

2 tbsp EVOO

S & P

4 cups water

Part II:

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, thawed & sliced into strips

1 zucchini, cubed

1 tomato, cubed

1 small onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, pressed

2 tbsp EVOO

6oz crumbled feta cheese

8 fresh basil leaves

Juice of 1 lime

What to Do:

1. Bring 4 cups water and star anise, all-spice and cinnamon stick to boil. Allow the flavors to saturate at bit. Once the liquid is dark(ish) yellow, strain out star anise, cinnamon stick & all-spice. Add quinoa. Bring back to boil and immediately lower to simmer. Cover with lid, allow to simmer until broth is absorbed, the quinoa is fluffy, and the white line is visible in the grain. (Approx 12 minutes).

2. Heat 2 tbsp EVOO in a skillet. Cook pressed garlic and diced onions until onions clarify (are translucent). Stir in chicken strips. Cook until they are slightly pink in the middle. Remove to a bowl. (Don’t panic ~ we’re not going to leave them slightly under-cooked!)

3. Add additional 2 tbsp olive oil and zucchini to skillet. A few minutes later, add tomatoes. (Okay, so the thing is, you can add them at the same time, which is what I did. But zucchini takes a little longer to soften than tomato, so to maintain the integrity of the tomato, I suggest adding it a few minutes after the zucchini).

4. Once the zucchini is soft, return chicken to skillet and sprinkle feta & basil leaves on top. Fold in. Squeeze the juice of one lime into the skillet. Make sure chicken is fully cooked and hot.