Like many of you, I find myself pressed for time, but still crave a somewhat sophisticated meal. This week I came up with a recipe for Mediterranean chicken that didn't cramp my schedule or my style. It's also wholesome, with the Peruvian grain quinoa, which has a high protein content. Next time I make it (which will definitely be soon), I'll stir in the basil at the last minute to prevent wilting. If you're not a fan of raw garlic, sauté it for a minute to mellow out its flavors. To look at the recipe, read more.
Original recipe by YumSugar
Ingredients
Cooking spray
1 pound chicken breasts, butterflied
1 cup uncooked quinoa
1/4 cup chopped pitted Spanish Manzanilla olives
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon chopped capers
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, finely crushed
Directions
- Spray grill or grill pan with cooking spray. Grill chicken until cooked through.
- In a large pot, cook quinoa with 2 cups water until water is completely absorbed and grain appears soft and translucent, about 10 to 15 minutes. (It is normal to see the filament-like germ ring along the edge of the grain.)
- In a large bowl, combine olives, capers, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and garlic.
- Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and add to olive mixture. Add quinoa to olive mixture.
- Just before serving, stir in basil.
Serves 4.
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Fat Face
I totally made a different version of this last night! I sauteed pounded chicken breasts in olive oil and garlic added lemon juice, wine, capers, and a little bit of butter and served it with quinoa, my new favorite starch! It was absolutely delicious and will make it many more times!
1I miss my trader joe quinoa.
Sad!
2I got some at a normal grocery store that's great, I do love trader joe's though. Don't go there as often since I moved back to MD.
3I want to try this but I think I'll have to eat the quinoa on the side... I'm one of those 'can't stand my food to mixed together' people. The olive saute' looks delicious!
4i love finding new ways to incorporate quinoa into my dishes, and if i ate chicken this would rock. i think that swapping it out for tofu would be good - though i might have TOO much protein in my dish
5This looks really good - except for the green olives, which I have a strong aversion to. Can I leave them out or sub in black olives?
6Suziryder: The dish tastes just as delicious with Kalamata olives. You could also sub black olives, like you were saying. Hope you enjoy the dish!
7I'm making this for dinner tomorrow night.
8This is absolutely delicious - I prefer to make it with salmon or shrimp - poach the salmon in white wine and cut up small - yummy and easy to make
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