Honey Glazed Sesame Chicken

Sorry for the long break without any new recipes! I hope you missed me! ;)

This is a VERY simple recipe that is delicious and healthy! I was going for something similar to PF Chang's or Pei Wei without frying the chicken, so I hope you like this lighter but just as tasty version!

Serves 2 (but you can easily double!)

Ingredients:
1/2 cup soy sauce (low sodium)
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 chicken breasts, cut into one inch pieces
1/4 cup sesame seeds

Whisk first five ingredients together in a small bowl. Put chicken pieces a shallow dish or bow and pour half of the mixture over the chicken. Reserve the rest of the mixture for later. Cover the chicken and marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to two hours. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium high heat and cook chicken pieces until cooked through. Remove chicken from pan.

Meanwhile, toast sesame seeds in a small skillet over light heat or on a sheet pan in the oven. This will bring out the flavor of the sesame seeds.

Add remaining soy sauce mixture to pan and bring to a light simmer. This will allow the sauce to thicken. Once the sauce has thickened a bit, add chicken back to pan, tossing to coat. Sprinkle sesame seeds over chicken and serve over brown rice and/or with steamed vegetables.

As always, leave me a comment if you have any questions or just to let me know what you think!

Pad Thai

Love pad thai? Well, now you can make it at home with ingredients you probably already have and stop spending money on take-out!

1 package of flat rice noodles (Chinese section of the grocery store)

1 lb. choice of beef, chicken, pork, shrimp

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 garlic cloves

2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger (in the produce section)

1/2 cup chicken broth

2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce

2 tablespoons ketchup

1/2 teaspoon fish sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon hot sauce

1 head of brocoli, cut into florets and lightly steamed*

2 green onions, cut into one inch lengths

1 can of water chestnuts, drained and roughly chopped

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Bring pot of salted water to a boil. In a wok or large saute pan, heat olive oil on medium high heat. Add ginger and garlic and cook for one minute. Add meat of your choice and saute until cooked through and remove from pan. Drain fat from pan, if necessary. Deglaze pan with chicken stock, scraping browned bits from the bottom, bring to a simmer.

Meanwhile, cook noodles according to package directions and drain.

In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce, ketchup, fish sauce, sugar and hot sauce and add to the pan. Simmer for about 5-7 minutes to allow the sauce to thicken and the flavors to incorporate.

Add steamed brocoli, green onions, water chestnuts to the pan and toss in sauce. Add meat and noodles to the pan tossing well. Before serving, stir in the fresh cilantro.

*If you don't have a steamer, a very easy and quick way to steam vegetables is to put them in a microwave safe bowl and tightly cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Microwave in 30 second intervals until desire doneness--about one minute and a half for very crisp, al dente, which is the way I like it.

I hope you enjoy this homemade version of pad thai! As always, leave a comment with questions or to let me know what you think!