Tag Archives: low-carb

CHICKEN & ZUCCHINI STIR-FRY

Posted in Poultry by

Zucchini is a delicious vegetable but pretty tricky to stir-fry, as it can go mushy super quickly. Today I share a recipe that deals with this problem and results in a nice one-pot meal, flavorful and easy to put together. Just keep in mind you’ll need 30 minutes to draw the juices out of the zucchini slices, which is about the same time the chicken will need to marinate. Perfect timing!

ORIENTAL-STYLE CHICKEN AND ZUCCHINI STIR-FRY
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

3 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons salt
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in 1/2 inch pieces

to marinate the meat:
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons dry sherry
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cornstarch

for stir-fry:
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 bell pepper, sliced thin
1/2 Serrano pepper, finely minced
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp cornstarch
salt to taste
roasted peanuts, about 1/3 cup
fresh cilantro leaves to serve

Prepare the zucchini by adding it to a large bowl and sprinkling the salt all over. Leave it at room temperature for 30 minutes. Rinse briefly to remove the salt, dry the slices over paper towel. They are now ready to use.

Marinate the chicken by mixing sherry, soy sauce, cornstarch and baking soda in a small bowl, and adding to the meat. Leave it for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Make the finishing sauce by mixing water, hoisin, soy, sesame oil and cornstarch. Reserve.

Heat the oil on a wok, add the chicken pieces and fry until golden brown on all sides. Remove to a bowl, add more oil if needed, sauté the bell pepper and Serrano pepper for a couple of minutes, seasoning lightly with salt. Increase the heat to high, add the zucchini slices, move them around for 10 seconds or so, add the chicken back, stir fry everything together for a minute. Add the finishing sauce, and heat it all together until it thickens slightly. Add peanuts, cilantro, and serve over steamed white rice.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I really like the fact that marinating the meat and prepping the zucchini takes the same amount of time. Once that is out of the way, dinner will be ready in minutes, and all textures will be perfect. The zucchini cooks so quickly that you can also add it together with the finishing sauce and just heat it for a few minutes until it all thickens, making it even simpler. If you like more heat, add Sriracha or any other type of chili oil. Of course, for most people garlic and onion sauté with the bell peppers will be great too. As I always say, your kitchen, your rules… But definitely give this a try, you will not look at zucchini stir-fry the same way…

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MISO-GINGER TURKEY MEATBALLS WITH CABBAGE “NOODLES”

Posted in Poultry by

Once again, I share a recipe that will not get any prizes on beauty contests. Brown food, oh so very tricky to get a good-looking picture. But I would never shy away from sharing something tasty, so let’s get to the most important point: how to get this to your table!

MISO-GINGER MEATBALLS WITH CABBAGE “NOODLES”
(inspired by Modern Proper)

1 + 1/2 pounds ground turkey
2 tablespoons white miso paste
1 egg
1/2 cup almond flour
1/4 cup finely grated carrot
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 + 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
olive oil spray

for the cabbage:
1 tablespoon grapeseed oil
finely sliced green cabbage, amount to taste
salt and pepper to taste

to finish the dish:
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon white miso paste
sesame seeds for serving

 Heat oven to 400F.

In a large bowl, stir together the eggs and 1 tablespoon of the miso paste until fully incorporated. Add the ground turkey, almond flour, carrot, ginger, salt, and pepper. Mix well, then with wet hands, form golf ball–size meatballs and place on a sheet pan covered with aluminum foil. Spray the surface of the meatballs with olive oil, and bake for about 20 minutes, turning them midway through baking.

When the meatballs are almost done, start making the cabbage. Heat the oil on a large non-stick skillet until almost smoking. Add the cabbage, season with salt and pepper, and allow it to brown slightly. Move it around, flipping the strands, until cooked through, but don’t let it get mushy. Transfer to a serving dish. To the same skillet, add the soy sauce and miso, whisk until the miso fully dissolves. Add the turkey meatballs to the soy mixture and simmer gently for a few minutes, with the pan covered.

Serve the meatballs with the cabbage noodles, sprinkle with sesame seeds if so desired.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: My friend Tracy a couple of months ago mentioned that cabbage is a great alternative to low-carb “noodles” if you get tired of zucchini. I am a huge fan of zoodles , but decided to give her idea a try, and I can see why she loved her Pad Thai so much when lightened up with thinly sliced cabbage. It absorbs any flavor you use for a sauce, and the texture is quite pleasing. I don’t follow any particular type of diet, but tend to favor lightening the carbs whenever possible. In this case, it matched well the meatballs in their Oriental ways. I served ours with air-fried butternut squash that was leftover from another meal.

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THAI-MEATBALLS OVER WILTED BOK-CHOY

Posted in Poultry, Side dishes, Veggies by

These turkey meatballs lean towards Thai cuisine, but I took a few departures and incorporated a Brazilian moqueca touch. If you want to make the meal heartier, serve some rice or noodles as side dishes. Soba would work great.

THAI-MEATBALLS WITH WILTED BOK-CHOY
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

for the meatballs (makes about 16)
2 pounds ground turkey (I use 85% fat)
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon red curry paste
1 egg

for the sauce:
1 tablespoon grapeseed oil
1 shallot, minced
1 tablespoon red curry paste
1 cup pureed tomatoes (canned is fine)
1 cup coconut milk (low-fat is ok)
2 tsp fish sauce
salt and pepper to taste
juice of one lime

for the bok-choy:
6 to 8 baby bok-choy, sliced in half lengthwise
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
drizzle of soy sauce
drizzle of lime juice

Heat oven to 420F.
Make the meatballs combining all ingredients in a large bowl. Form 16 meatballs and place them on a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil. Spray the foil lightly with olive oil, then spray lightly the surface of the meatballs also. Roast for 20 minutes, flipping them over halfway through baking time. Remove from the oven and reserve. This can be made hours or a day in advance.

Make the sauce. Heat the oil and sautéed the shallot for a few minutes until soft and fragrant. Add the red curry paste and cook for a minute or two, stirring. Add the tomatoes, coconut milk, fish sauce, season lightly with salt and pepper. Cook for a couple of minutes, add the reserved meatballs and simmer gently for 20 minutes. Add the lime juice right before serving.

Make the bok-choy. Heat the oil on a large skillet. Add the bok-choy, cut side down, cook for a couple of minutes without moving them, to get a nice browning on the surface. Flip the pieces over, season with salt and pepper. Drizzle soy sauce, lime juice, cover the pan and simmer for a few minutes until tender. Serve right away, with the meatballs and sauce.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Traditionally, this type of recipe calls for coconut milk as the main component of the sauce. I find that a bit too heavy, also very high on the saturated fat content. So I tone it down with pureed tomatoes. You can just use a full can of coconut milk, if you prefer.

The meatballs have a nice texture, and incorporate the flavor of the sauce well. As to the red curry paste, I have a favorite brand now, after seeing it recommended by cookbook authors and food bloggers: Mae Ploy. It is much better than any brand I’ve used in the past. You can find it online if not available in stores where you live (click here). Leftovers (meatballs only, bok-choy was gone) were delicious on day #2 and day #3. And yes, they were mine, all mine…

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LOW-CARB SUPER FAST CHICKEN PARMIGIANA

Posted in Air-Frying, Poultry by

Air-fryer to the rescue again… I will give you pretty loose instructions, because how you make it will depend on your carb goals. If you want to do close to zero carbs, omit the bread crumbs. The texture will suffer a bit, but it will still work. If you want to do moderate carbs, use the mixture I did. I am quite surprised by how much I liked the texture of the meat, and the fact that frying the chicken breast on the stove top before baking was not needed at all. A leap of faith was needed for me to try it the first time. I’ve made it three times ever since.

LOW-CARB AIR-FRYED CHICKEN PARMIGIANA
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

2 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless, lightly seasoned with salt
2 eggs, whisked with a teaspoon of water, salt and Herbes de Provence to taste
50:50 mixture of bread crumbs and almond flour
(lower carb alternative 50:50 mixture of almond flour + finely grated Parmigiano cheese)
tomato sauce
mozzarella cheese

Dip the chicken breasts in the seasoned whisked egg mixture, coat both sides with your choice of “breading.” Spray the basket of the air-fryer with a little olive oil. Carefully place the pieces of meat side by side in the basket. Turn the air-fryer to 390F and cook for 10 minutes. If you are using very large breasts, cook for 12 minutes, but the recipe works best with smallish pieces of meat.

Gently flip the meat over, add tomato sauce and cheese. Air-fry for 6 additional minutes. Remove the meat and let it rest for a few minutes before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: There are three little issues that might annoy you with this method. You know I never lie…

First: if you go real low in carbs, the coating is on the soft side. It will be very hard to flip the chicken piece without losing part of it to the basket. Even with the bread crumbs a little bit is lost. I am not sure if the flipping of the piece is necessary, and intend to try without doing it next time.

Second: it makes a bit of a mess in the basket once the cheese melts. I am a neat-freak and that means I spend quite a bit of time cleaning it up and inspecting every little corner. It still does not prevent me from making it, but keep that in mind and don’t get mad at me…

Third: if you have a smallish air-fryer like I do, you can only do two pieces of chicken at a time. It turns out that when I make this, I do the regular kind (stove-top, fried then baked) for the husband, and this lower-carb version for me. But if you are feeding a family of four, this is not a good option.

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SUNFLOWER SEED “RISOTTO” WITH EDAMAME

Posted in Rice and Grains by

It is not often that a recipe blows my mind and I get so excited about it I can hardly wait to share here… This is not rice-based. There is no rice at all. The whole concoction is made with sunflower seeds, soaked for several hours. It is absolutely delicious, hearty but considerably lower in carbs. The starting point for my version was a recipe from Naturally Nourished, by Sarah Britton. I was not sure the husband was going to like it that much, but he thought it was one of the tastiest side dishes I’ve made in the recent past. So there you go!

SUNFLOWER SEED “RISOTTO” WITH EDAMAME
(inspired by Naturally Nourished)

2 cups raw, unsalted, shelled sunflower seeds
1 tsp salt, plus more as needed
1 tablespoon grapeseed oil
1 fennel bulb, diced small
2 cups vegetable stock (you won’t need the full amount)
frozen edamame, about 1/2 cup or amount to taste

Soak the sunflower seeds overnight or all day with the sea salt in a large bowl of water. Drain and rinse the sunflower seeds.

In a high-power blender (I used a Vitamix), add 1/2 cup of soaked seeds and half a cup of water. Blend util fully smooth, remove and set aside.

In a non-stick skillet or small stockpot, heat the oil, add the fennel, season with salt and pepper. After about 2 minutes, add the soaked and drained whole sunflower seeds, stir to coat with the oil, then add vegetable stock to completely cover the seeds. It will depend on the size of your pan, but you will probably need less than 2 cups. Add a little salt and pepper if so desired.

Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons of the reserved sunflower seed cream, stir, then add frozen edamame, spread all over the surface, and cover the pan again. Cook gently for 5 minutes, then check that the seeds are tender and the edamame warm. If needed, add more vegetable stock, or alternatively remove the lid and let the excess liquid evaporate.

Serve the “risotto” right away.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I fell in love with this dish at first bite… The cream of seeds made in the Vitamix has a strong taste, and gives the grain a luscious texture without the need for butter. You won’t use all, but it is hard to make less in the Vitamix. I am saving the leftover for next time, because it will happen again very soon… You can add different veggies, mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, whatever you feel like, adjusting the timing or cooking the veggies before incorporating in the “risotto.” Sometimes it is hard to find raw sunflower seeds, but when we have them available in our grocery store, we buy several packages. Now that this dish will be part of our regular rotation, I cannot afford to run out of them!

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