Pineapple Fried Rice Style Quinoa with Sweet Chili Stir Fry Chicken

I made this weeks ago but it's been so busy at work that I've been working a lot of overtime and haven't had time to blog unfortunately. (I haven't even had time to cook actually!) I made this quinoa as an experiment and the chicken followed. I love quinoa and I have been experimenting with it as a substitution for rice. I decided to try making quinoa fried rice style. It was AMAZING. Let me just tell you, it exceeded all of my expectations. I thought it tasted BETTER than some of the normal fried rice I've had at restaurants even. My co-workers loved it as well--it passed the taste test! Haha. You could potentially make the fried rice quinoa with or without the pineapple. I just LOVE pineapple, so I threw it in there.
DISCLAIMER: Sorry for the low quality photos, I really thought this was going to be a failed attempt at something great so I didn't bother with taking a bunch of photos. Next time! :)

Pineapple Fried Rice Style Quinoa

Ingredients
1 cup dry, rinsed quinoa
2 cups water
1 egg
1/4 cup and 2 tbsp grapeseed oil (separated) or 1/2 stick of butter
6 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 cup chopped cashews (optional)
1 and 1/8 cup yellow onion, finely chopped -- separated into 1 cup and 1/8 cup (I basically chopped up one entire yellow onion and used 1/2 for the quinoa and 1/2 for the chicken)
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 cup chopped baby carrots
2/3 cup peas

Sweet Chili Stir Fry Chicken


Ingredients
2 chicken breasts
1 cup finely chopped yellow onion
2 tbsp minced garlic
2 tbsp grapeseed oil
1/3 cup sweet chili sauce (I got mine at the grocery store but it looks like this: Sweet Chili Sauce - 25 oz)
Pineapple Chunks to taste (I used a whole can of pineapple chunks in water for the rice and chicken)
Salt & Pepper

Preparation

Quinoa
1. Cook quinoa using the method on the back of your package or use a rice steamer like I do. Along with the water and the quinoa, add in about 1/8 cup of chopped onion as well.
2. While the quinoa is cooking (usually takes about 20 minutes) stir fry the yellow onion, carrots and peas in the 2 tbsp of grapeseed oil and garlic.
3. Once the onions look fairly translucent, add in the pineapple. Heat for another 3 minutes or so and then take off the heat.
4. When the quinoa is completely cooked, melt the 1/2 stick of butter in a large skillet (may be substituted for grapeseed or olive oil as mentioned in the ingredients).
5. Put the cooked quinoa into the skillet along with the butter or grapeseed oil and "fry" the quinoa, stirring rapidly as to not burn. (I typically use medium heat.)
6. Once the quinoa is fully coated, add in the stir fried veggies, soy sauce, and chopped cashews and mix thoroughly.
7. In the pan you had the veggies, use the left over oil to fry and scramble up one egg.
8. Once the scrambled egg is cooked, chop it up (using the spatula) and add it to the fried quinoa. Mix thoroughly.

Chicken
While you're frying up the veggies on one burner, start the chicken on another burner.
1. Cube the 2 chicken breasts into 1 inch pieces.
2. Add the grapeseed oil to the pan and saute the onion and minced garlic.
3. Once the onion looks translucent add in the cubed chicken.
4. Stir fry the chicken for a good 5-10 minutes until the chicken looks white. At this point add in the sweet chili sauce and pineapple.

5. Continue to cook the chicken for another 10 minutes on low-medium, stirring occasionally. (I covered my chicken with a lid and let it simmer while I finished up the quinoa.)

Clean Eating Cream of Carrot Soup

After a weekend full of Superbowl festivities and food, I have been anxious to get back on track with healthy eating. I honestly can feel the difference in how I feel and function when I'm eating cleaner than when I am eating processed, junky food. I actually had a stomach ache from all the appetizers this past weekend. Funny enough, I used to be able to eat greasy, rich food with no real problem. Interesting how your body adapts. Anywho, that's enough of my back-story. I decided to make a clean cream of carrot soup for dinner tonight since it's so miserable outside--rainy weather is like snow to Californians. I just had a bowl and it was so warm and satisfying! I decided to post the recipe right after I ate since the cream of broccoli soup I made in the beginning of January seemed to be well received by many people. I had some inspiration from the cream of broccoli soup in terms of ingredients and measurements.

Ingredients
Serves 4-6
- 5 cups of baby carrots
- 4 cups of low sodium organic chicken broth (I use water and Better Than Bouillon Organic Chicken Base)
- 3 cups almond milk (can use soy or non-fat skim milk instead, I personally like the nutty flavor with carrots)
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1/4 of a medium yellow onion, chopped finely
- 2 tbsp grapeseed oil (or olive oil)
- 1 tbsp agave nectar (optional based on how sweet your carrots are, some are more bitter than others)
- salt and pepper
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp allspice (yes, believe it or not, allspice makes this soup very flavorful) 

Preparation
1. Boil your carrots in a large stock pot until the carrots are soft enough to mash with a fork. Turn heat down to medium. (This usually takes me about 20 minutes or so.)
2. Strain carrots and set aside.
3. Heat 2 tbsp of grapeseed oil in same pot and add the chopped onion and garlic. Caramelize the onion with the garlic until the onion is transparent.
4. Next add the chicken broth to this same pot and bring to a simmer.
5. Add the 3 cups milk and stir.
6. Add in the carrots to the broth.
7. If you have an immersion blender, use it to puree the soup. (I love mine--Cuisinart Smart Stick Hand Blender with Whisk and Chopper Attachments) Otherwise, you can pour the soup into a blender and puree — be careful, as the soup is very hot.
Note: I prefer a smooth and creamy consistency so I puree my soup for a good 30 seconds to 1 minute, mixing the soup around with the immersion blender in a circular motion. If you prefer a more chunky soup you can puree by using short pulses.
8. Add cayenne, paprika, and allspice. Mix well.
9. Salt and pepper as desired.
10. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!  

Slow Cooker Pineapple Salsa Chicken & Quinoa

Notice I'm on a quinoa kick? Haha. I just discovered the grain at the beginning of January and have quickly fell in love with it. It's very versatile, just like rice, but has more protein and is better for your body. I can't officially call this recipe "clean" since I used some ingredients which are kind of questionable--slightly processed low sodium soy sauce for example. But you should be able to substitute for completely organic products if you have them at home. The boyfriend LOVED this recipe. He ended up eating more than he should but he couldn't get enough. :) This recipe was inspired by my boyfriend's random purchase of pineapple salsa from Trader Joe's while on his lunch break at work AND the coincidence that I had to stop by his work on the way back home from my lunch break. (Did I mention that working from home on occasion tends to make life pretty convenient?) Anywho I already had chicken ready to go and was just in need of some inspiration, a.k.a. PINEAPPLE--which I can't get enough of--my favorite fruit. The quinoa was honestly an afterthought once I saw that the salsa was getting kind of runny after being heated for so long. PS - Sorry for the crappy pictures, I honestly didn't think I would end up blogging about this particular dinner until after I ate it! Haha.

Ingredients
- 2 tbsp grapeseed oil (or olive oil)
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/2 a can of pineapple chunks (Canned in natural juices, not syrup--very important. If you have fresh pineapple on hand, even better.)
- 1/2 cup pineapple juice (from can above)
- 3/4 jar of Trader Joe's Pineapple Salsa
- 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
- 1 cup quinoa

Tools
- slow cooker (Mine's a Crock-Pot Brand 3-Quart Slow Cooker --very inexpensive investment!)

Preparation
1. Coat the bottom of your crock pot with the grapeseed oil to prevent stickage. (Or use those nifty crock pot liners--I was all out.)
2. Place the chicken breasts into the crock pot along with the soy sauce, about three quarters of the jar of salsa and half a can of the pineapple chunks (more depending on your preference). Don't forget to save the juice.
3. Cover and put on high for about 3 hours.
4. Check on your chicken, it should be white all the way through at this point. Your salsa should be a little watery now that it has been heated.
5. Carefully shred your chicken using 2 forks or a fork and a knife--try not to scratch your crock pot. (You could always take out the chicken and do this process in another bowl, I'm just too lazy. Haha)
5. Add the quinoa and pineapple juice to the chicken and salsa and mix around a bit so the quinoa is covered in liquid. (If your crock pot is looking a little too dry with the addition of the quinoa, either add more pineapple juice or water. But these measurements worked out fine for me.)
6. Recover and keep on high for another hour.
7. Your quinoa should now be fluffy and soft. (Tasting is always encouraged.)
8. Stir the quinoa around so that the pineapple and shredded chicken are present in every bite.
9. Viola! Slow cooker healthy meal DONE!

Green Chile Shredded Chicken and Spanish Quinoa

I have been trying to find time to post all weekend and look--it's already Wednesday! I have been reorganizing and prepping my house for a Superbowl party next weekend. Anywho I made this last week for dinner. It was delicious! I really have been enjoying all my experimentation with quinoa and making my recipes more clean. One of my favorite foods growing up was my grandmother's Spanish rice. Since my quinoa in the rice cooker came out so well the last time I made it, I thought I'd try making a Spanish quinoa using my grandmother's recipe by simply substituting the rice for quinoa. To go along with the quinoa I decided to make a green chile shredded chicken and heated up some sweet corn and black beans.

Green Chile Shredded Chicken

Ingredients
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 can diced green chiles
- 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tbsp grapeseed oil (or olive oil)
- salt and pepper

Preparation

1. Boil chicken breasts on medium-high for about 15-20 minutes or until white all the way through and easy to pull apart with two forks.
2. Drain chicken and shred. Put back in the pot with oil, lemon juice and green chile. Make sure stove is on low to medium so as to not overcook the chicken--you just want to heat it up with the new ingredients.
3. Once the chicken is fully immersed with the green chile and heated, salt and pepper to taste.

 

Spanish Quinoa 

Ingredients
- 1/4 cup chopped onion (about a quarter of a medium sized onion)
- 1 cup pureed organic tomato (about 2-3 roma tomatoes or 1 large tomato -- I used my mini chopper to puree, it can be a little chunky)
- 2 tbsp grapeseed oil (or olive oil)
- 1 cup quinoa
- 1 1/4 cup water

Preparation
1. Heat oil on medium.
2. Add quinoa to oil and saute the quinoa for about 1-2 minutes until fully browned.
3. Transfer the quinoa to your rice cooker.
or
3. Transfer quinoa to a larger pot.
4. Add the pureed tomato, chopped onion and water and stir.
5. Use rice cooker as instructions indicate (mine took about 20 minutes)
or
5. Cook quinoa mixture on medium for about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the water has been absorbed and the quinoa is light and fluffy. (Be careful not to let the rice stick to the bottom of the pot and burn.)
6. Serve chicken on a bed of organic spring mix salad with a side of quinoa and the corn and black bean mixture.

Enjoy!

Afternoon Snack

Greek yogurt with fresh kiwi and blueberries.