Chile Verde Chicken + Red Quinoa Mexican Pilaf

My Aunt Grace makes the best chile verde chicken around. When I asked the secret to her delicious recipe, I was surprised to find much of the magic came out of a can. That's why I'm happy to share this easy weekday meal that has been winning me rave reviews from dinner guests for the past decade. If you haven't tried one of my recipes yet - this one is a sure hit. The red quinoa pilaf was something I threw together on the fly, and makes a fit and filling accompaniment!

Ingredients for Chile Verde Chicken

• 6-8 chicken thighs, bone-in
  
• 3, 7 oz. cans Embasa green tomatillo sauce
  (see Brands I Like below)
  
• 1 small can diced mild green chilies
  
• 2 limes
  
• 1/2 spanish onion, coarsely chopped
  
• 1 tsp garlic, minced
  
• handful of cilantro leaves
  
• oregano
  
• garlic salt
  
• pepper
  
• olive oil

Ingredients for Quinoa Pilaf

• 1, 12 oz. box red quinoa
  (see Brands I Like below)
  
• 1 medium tomato
  
• 1 small green bell pepper
  
• 1/3 spanish onion
  
• 1 packet/cube of chicken bullion
  (or substitute cooking water for chicken broth)
  
• 1 cup of black beans
  
• 1 cup of frozen corn
  
• olive oil
  
• cilantro for garnish

First, get that chicken marinading. Remove skin from chicken and place thighs in a large bowl. Season with garlic salt, pepper and oregano. Drizzle generously with olive oil and the juice of 1 lime. Toss to coat completely. Cover and set aside for 15 minutes.


While chicken marinates, get chopping for your quinoa pilaf. Dice the tomato, onion and green pepper. Set aside so you're prepared and the meal is timed together.


Add 2 tbsp of olive oil to a large, deep skillet with a lid. On medium heat saute the chopped onion and garlic for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly to keep garlic from burning. Lay chicken pieces face-down over the onion mix in a single layer. Brown chicken for 2-3 minutes, flip pieces and brown for additional 2-3 minutes until a nice color as pictured above.


Add cans of Embasa sauce and diced green chilies. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook covered for 10 minutes. Flip chicken pieces, cover and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes until chicken is cooked through.


While chicken is cooking, in a separate pot add 2 tbsp of olive oil and saute the quinoa chopped veggies, chicken bullion packet and saute for 5 minutes.


Add water as according to quinoa package, MINUS 1/2 cup liquid since the veggies & other additions will create their own juices. Stir until combined then add quinoa. I made 1 cup of quinoa and added 1 1/2 cups water. Bring water to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer and cook according to package directions, I cooked for 15 minutes.

While quinoa is cooking rinse 1 cup of cooked black beans. Once quinoa is cooked (you will see a little white ring around the red grain), add black beans and frozen corn, stir over low heat for 3-4 minutes. Turn off heat and keep covered until ready to serve. Garnish with cilantro.


Once the green chili chicken has finished cooking, turn off heat and stir in a handful of chopped cilantro and the juice of 1 lime.

Brands I Like

This Embasa sauce has the perfect balance of spiciness. I've made my own tomatillo sauces in the past, but popping this can open is way easier than blanching tomatillos and busting out a food processor. Can't find the Embasa sauce at your local grocer? You can buy it online by clicking here!

I got this Ancient Harvest red heirloom variety of quinoa at Whole Foods. I've also seen it at Trader Joes, but if you still can't find it locally, you can order single boxes online by clicking here.

Lunch Solutions: The Thinner Happy Meal

I spend all day thinking about food, so office lunchtime is never too early. Bringing my own lunch won't keep me from seeking take-out, unless my healthy alternative can satisfy my comfort food cravings. I make these chicken nuggets for dinner one night, and make a whole lot extra to bring for lunch the rest of the week.

Ingredients

• 2 lb chicken breasts
  
• 2 egg whites
  
• 2 cups panko bread crumbs (whole wheat if avail)
  
• 1 tsp salt
  
• 3 tsp cajun seasoning
  
• 1/2 tsp mustard powder
  
• 1/4 tsp pepper
  
• 2 eggs
  
• 1 tbsp milk
  
• cooking spray

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cut up chicken breasts into bite sized pieces. Keep them a little thinner so that they can crisp up quickly without drying out the chicken.


Place panko crumbs in a medium bowl. Add cajun seasoning, mustard, salt & pepper and mix together until combined. Taste quickly and adjust any seasoning to taste preferences.


In another bowl add eggs. Add milk and whisk together until completely combined.


Dunk a couple chicken bites into egg mixture then dredge through bread crumb seasoning. Panko crumbs are larger than finer bread crumbs so you may still see a little of the chicken pink showing through. That's fine, just pat on crumbs to coat pieces as best you can.


On a cookie sheet greased with cooking spray, lay out nugget pieces in a single layer, leaving enough space so chicken doesn't touch. For this recipe you will probably need 2 cookie sheets to fit all the nuggets.


Bake for 5 minutes, flip chicken pieces, and return to oven for additional 5 minutes. When using 2 cookie sheets, be sure to alternate which is on top/ bottom to ensure even cooking time. Panko crumbs should start to brown & chicken should be cooked through.

Chicken Fajita Skewers w/ Spicy Aioli Sauce Over Mexican-Style Brown Rice

I try to save money by using a good protein sale as inspiration for dinner. Today at my local market, chicken thighs were on sale for $1.29 a pound. My thoughts went straight to the comfort of fajitas, but to skip on having to buy tortillas and instead use the brown rice I already had on hand, I came up with these fajita skewers on a whim. Finally arriving home with veggies from local produce stand, Johnny D's, I decided to crack into a lost PBR and use my beer as a marinade base. Cheers!

Ingredients for Fajita Skewers

• 4-5 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  
• 2 green peppers
  
• 2 orange peppers
  
• dozen cherry tomatoes
  
• sweet onion (vidalia)
  
• olive oil
  
• oregano
  
• fresh ground salt & pepper
  
• cooking spray
  
• 6" wooden skewers *soaked for at least 30 mins*
  

Ingredients for Marinade

• juice of one lime
  
• 2 tbsp olive oil
  
• half can lager beer
  
• 1 tsp minced garlic
  
• 1 handful cilantro leaves
  
• oregano
  
• few shakes chipotle chili powder
  
• fresh ground salt & pepper
  

Ingredients for Mexican Brown Rice

• 1 tsp minced garlic
  
• 2 tbsp olive oil
  
• 1/8 cup diced onion
  
• 1/4 cup tomato sauce (I used already seasoned)
  
• packet of low sodium chicken bouillon
  
• 1 cup long grain brown rice
  
• 2 cups water
  

Ingredients for Spicy Aioli Sauce

• 1/2 tsp minced garlic
  
• 2 tbsp mayonnaise
  
• juice of 1 lime
  
• few shakes chipotle chili powder
  
• few shakes vinegar/cayenne hot sauce (I use Franks)
  

Plan of Attack: When you've got a lot of have elements to dinner it's good to have a game plan. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. I recommend marinading the chicken first. Then getting the rice set to cook before returning to the skewers.



First, marinade the chicken. Cut chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces and place in a bowl. Add all marinade ingredients into the bowl except beer, and toss chicken pieces to coat completely. Add enough beer to just cover the chicken pieces. Cover and set aside to marinade for 20-30 minutes.


Next, get the Mexican-Style brown rice cooking. Saute garlic in a medium-sized pot in olive oil for 30 seconds at a medium-low heat. Take care not to let the garlic burn. Add onion and saute until onion becomes opaque, approx 5 minutes. Add rice and saute another 5 minutes. Add water, bouillon and tomato sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low setting, cover and cook rice according to packaging. (I cooked my rice 45 minutes). Once all liquid is absorbed fluff rice with a fork.


While the chicken is finishing its marinade & the rice is cooking, prep your veggies to be skewered. Cut the onion into 1-inch pieces. Remove stems, seeds and membrane from bell peppers and chop into 1-inch pieces. In a large mixing bowl, add veggie bites to cherry tomatoes and toss with olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper.



You are finally ready to make your skewers! When using 6" skewers and using a mix or veg and chicken, I think using 2-3 chicken pieces per skewer is plenty. To keep everything in place, cap the ends of your skewers with bell pepper pieces, curving to hug a piece of chicken. Here's a sample skewer to prevent crowding: green pepper, chicken, onion, tomato, onion, chicken, orange bell pepper. Place finished skewers in a roasting dish(es) spritzed with cooking spray and transfer to oven. Cook 10 minutes, then flip each skewer over & cook for an another 10 minutes.

While the skewers are cooking, whip up this super fast Spicy Aioli Sauce. Add all the ingredients listed above into a small bowl. Whisk together with a fork until smooth, and you can drizzle sauce with spoon. If mixture is still too thick, add more lime juice. Taste and add more heat if desired - more chipotle powder for a smokey flavor, or more cayenne sauce for a vinegar tang.




Serve 2-3 skewers over a bed of mexican-style rice and drizzle with aioli sauce. To store, remove chicken & veg from skewers. This dinner could also be easily adapted to a fun appetizer. Try making mini skewers with one piece of chicken, onion, and tomato sandwiched with green & orange bell pepper pieces. Double or triple aioli sauce to make a fun dip for guests!