Quinoa Crusted Chicken

Are you a quinoa fan? I am. It's quite a nifty little seed, high in protein, fibre, iron and lots of other good stuff. I usually buy the seeds for salads and the flakes to wizz into flour, however it came to my attention recently that the flakes also make a rather good substitution for breadcrumbs. Naturally chicken schnitzel was on the cards...because, let's be honest who can resist a good schnitty!

So here is my recipe for quinoa crusted chicken, it's gluten/wheat free, clean, kind of paleo (if you dabble in the odd pseudo-grain) and most importantly, crunchy!! While nothing can ever trump the traditional crumbed schnitz I think this is a pretty good alternative if you're into the whole gluten free thing or simply enjoy trying something different.

Here's what you need (this will give you 6 medium sized schnitzels)...

3 chicken breasts (preferably free-range)
2 cups quinoa flakes
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
2 eggs beaten
2 tbs fresh thyme leaves
zest of 1 lemon, grated
1 large garlic clove, minced
salt and pepper
Coconut oil for frying (or olive if you prefer)


- Give each chicken breast a good bash with a meat tenderiser then cut in half so you have 6 pieces. Dredge each piece in buckwheat flour until lightly coated.

- Combine quinoa flakes, thyme, lemon, garlic, salt and pepper in a large dish. 

- Dip each piece of chicken in egg and then in quinoa mixture. Make sure each schnitzel is evenly coated in quinoa (gently shake off excess) to ensure a nice crunchy crust. They should look like this.

- Heat oil and fry over medium heat (if the pan is too hot they will burn on the outside before chicken is cooked through so keep an eye on the heat). 

I served mine with a simple garden salad of lettuce, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red onion, blood orange and pear. A quick, healthy and tasty dinner!

Slow Cooker Pulled Chicken Tacos

I have a love/hate relationship with my slow cooker. There have been some hits and some glorious misses! I'm a kitchen control freak (you should see my face when my husband wants to have a go at stirring!) so putting all my trust in an appliance to cook my food properly takes some getting used to. 

I'm not a big fan of pan fried chicken thighs so that's how this recipe came to be. 'Pulled' is basically meat cooked until it is so soft and tender that you can just shred (pull) it apart rather than cutting. You could apply this idea to many secondary cuts of meat. Lamb shoulder marinated in Moroccan spices would work a treat and pulled pork is very popular too. I love making this on a day I know will be busy. You put on the chicken in the morning then just before dinner it's a simple case of making the guacamole and warming the tortillas. Easy peasy. 

 Here is what you will need.....

- 12 six inch corn tortillas
- Homemade guacamole (I used Mamasita's own recipe which you can find here)
- Sour cream

For the pulled chicken:

- 500g free range chicken thighs
- 1 medium red capsicum sliced
- 1 large red onion sliced
- 1 lime quartered 
- 1 large red chilli thinly sliced (remove pith and seeds if you want a milder flavour)
- 3 cloves garlic sliced
- 3 tbs smoked paprika (has to be smoked!)
- 1 tbs cumin
- 2 tbs toasted coriander seeds 
- 1/2 cup chopped coriander
- small bag of baby spinach

Put everything except the coriander and baby spinach into the slow cooker, squeeze the juice from limes into the pot before throwing them in. Toss until the mixture is well combined. Pop on lid and cook on slow for 6-8 hours depending on your slow cooker, the result will be a juicy, spicy delicious mess. When you can shred the chicken easily with 2 forks it is done.

Once you're satisfied the chicken is ready turn off the slow cooker, remove the lime quarters and discard then shred up the chicken. Add the baby spinach and coriander, give it a stir through then pop lid back on so the spinach can wilt while you make the guacamole and warm the tortillas. I like putting the tortillas in grill pan rather than the oven so they get a bit of char. 

Then you're ready to go. I like to eat mine like this (below) but you could assemble them any way you like.

Beware the chicken is super juicy to keep some napkins on hand. Best served with a cold beer or margarita!

Orange Mustard Chicken with Couscous

Don't you hate when you pull something out of the freezer for dinner then draw a complete mental blank when deciding what to do with it? This happened to me the other day with some chicken fillets. After a bit of googling this is what I came up with and my was it good! Quick and simple too; the perfect weekday dinner.

You can find the recipe here: http://aww.ninemsn.com.au/food/8376096/orange-mustard-chicken-with-couscous

I used honey instead of marmalade (because really...who under the age of 65 has marmalade in their house?) and added some sunflower seeds to the couscous for extra crunch.

Moroccan Chicken Soup

I love soup! Seeing as the wintery weather is creeping in I thought it would be apt to share my favourite soup recipe. It's a Morroccan style chicken soup and is always a big hit with my family. The broth is quite delicate in flavour despite the spices and the addition of couscous makes it quite a hearty dinner on a cold night.

I like this recipe as it utilises the entire chicken (poached in water to make broth then meat shredded into soup), it's also great when you're feeling a little under the weather. It has a nice chilli hit which is bound to blow any cold out! While the prep is a little time consuming, the end result is completely worth it.

Here is what you will need....

1-2 tbsp olive oil

1 large red onion, finely diced

1 long red chilli, finely chopped (discard seeds if you like it mild)

1 heaped tbs fresh mint, finely chopped

2 tbsp paprika, you can use smoked or sweet

1 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp raw sugar 

1/2 cup tomato puree

150g couscous

fresh coriander finely chopped to garnish

For the broth:

1 whole chicken, I use free range. Happy chickens= better tasting soup!

1 bunch parsley stalks

1 large brown onion cut into quarters

1 whole lemon cut in half

1 cinnamon stick

1 tbs corriander seeds

 

Place all the broth ingredients in a large stock pot and add enough water to just cover chicken. Bring to the boil then lower heat and simmer until chicken is just cooked through, 45-60mins depending on the size of your chicken.

Once chicken is cooked, remove and place in a separate bowl to cool. Continue to simmer broth on low heat for 10-15 mins until it has reduced a little. Season with salt and pepper then strain broth into a large bowl/jug and discard all the other bits and pieces. Once chicken is cool shred meat into bite sized strips.

Next heat oil in the same (now empty) pot and add onions and chilli, cook over medium heat for a few minutes until they begin to colour. Then add cumin, paprika, sugar, mint and tomato puree, stir to combine and then add sieved broth back to pot. Bring to the boil then add couscous. Simmer for 10-15 minutes on low heat then add shredded chicken, check seasoning and simmer for a further 5 minutes. 

Now this is terribly unauthentic but I add a bag of baby spinach to the soup at the end along with the chicken. It adds a bit of colour and makes me feel healthy!

Serve soup in wide shallow bowls with coriander garnish.