It Helps To Have A Plan

Stir-Fry Chicken & Baby Bok Choy

I took a road trip with friends over the weekend, and of course that included lunch at a cute cafe. While we enjoyed lunch, the conversation turned to cooking our own meals. One of the ladies said, "Cooking isn't hard...it's the DECIDING what to cook!" And there was an immediate chorus of agreement. That's exactly what I've told my daughters for years. It's the decision of what to cook, not the cooking itself, that is the biggest challenge to having meals at home. Standing in front of an open pantry or refrigerator and staring, without a recipe in mind, can send you straight out the door to pick up fast food. 

I'm pretty sure that years after I've departed this earth and someone asks my daughters, "What do you remember your mother saying?", the sentence about meal planning will be among the remembered phrases. It might be the only thing they remember! So it makes me smile to know that both daughters are dedicated meal planners. (They do better than I do.) On Sundays they both write out a weekly plan and make a grocery shopping list. Those plans might shift as the week unfolds but having that plan as a starting place gives a HUGE head start to getting supper on the table.

When I was visiting Jessica a couple of weeks ago she cooked supper the night I arrived. I had the pleasure of watching  her cook and then eating the delicious food. Both daughters make a big effort to cook healthy meals. This dinner plan was low carb and gluten-free and Whole30 compliant. They do not eat carb-free/gluten-free all of the time but they will include some meals like this during the week as they aim for balance. As the season of food—Halloween candy, Thanksgiving feasts, Christmas dinners and parties—arrives, we all would do well to plan some simple, healthy meals to enjoy during the week. Balance, people, balance. That's the goal.

She didn't change clothes. She put on an apron.

Jessica and Todd both work so easy meals are a must. If you have all the ingredients on hand, this stir fry is pretty quick to put together. If you actually set out the ingredients—and even measure them—before you start cooking, the prep feels easy. I've added some substitues in parentheses for ingredients I would be more likely to have in my kitchen. If you use soy sauce, know that it's no longer gluten-free. And if baby bok choy isn't at your store, you could use roughly chopped regular bok choy (the stem part will take longer to cook than the green leaf) or I think even roughly chopped cabbage could work.

STIR-FRY CHICKEN & BABY BOK CHOY

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tbsp. arrowroot starch (or cornstarch)
2 tbsp. avocado or olive oil

½ white onion, sliced thinly

2 baby bok choy*, ends removed and cut in half (or regular bok choy, roughly chopped)
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz. can sliced water chestnuts, drained

1 tsp. freshly grated ginger (or a good sprinkle of ground ginger)
¼ cup coconut aminos (or soy sauce)
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tsp. fish sauce (according to internet, sub with soy sauce or Worcestershire) 
½ tsp crushed red pepper, for spice (optional)

Slice chicken breasts against the grain into thin slices. Place in a bowl and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add arrowroot and toss until coated evenly.Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When very hot, Add chicken and sear on both sides until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes per side. You will likely need to do this in two batches, overcrowding the pan isn’t ideal as your chicken won’t get that good sear on it. As chicken is done cooking, set aside on a plate.

In the same skillet, add the onion. Saute for about 3 minutes, you may need to add an additional tbsp. of oil if you skillet is dry from cooking the chicken.

Add the bok choy*, garlic, and water chestnuts. Continue to saute until bok choy is tender, about 3 more minutes.

Reduce heat to medium. Add the ginger, coconut aminos, rice vinegar, fish sauce, and crushed red pepper (if using). Stir to combine and let simmer until sauce thickens and reduces, about 3-5 more minutes.

*Jessica says she often uses regular Bok Choy because that's what she can find. Says she chops it up and adds the leafy green part at the very end. The stem part will take longer to cook, so add it with the onions, or just after.

Serve over rice or cauliflower rice.

Jessica often uses frozen cauliflower rice instead of regular rice. It's carb free and low in calories. She roasts it in the oven. This time she picked frozen cauliflower rice with peas and carrots. Roast it like you would any other vegetable. Spray your baking sheet with oil, spread out the "rice" and roast at 400º for 20 minutes, stirring halfway, until lightly browned. If it's browning too quickly, turn the temp down halfway through the cooking. Or, take it out early. Just keep watch on it.

Jessica found this recipe on the blog The Defined Dish. I've heard her say that she likes many of the recipes there. They are mostly Whole30/Paleo compliant. Jessica also has her own blog for her recipes. She hasn't posted in a while, being busy with their big move and a baby on the way. But there are lots of recipes there to browse. 

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FYI, when I see a long list of ingredients I might move on the the next recipe. But often, like this recipe, it really isn't a complicated recipe. I put spaces into the ingredient list here, and grouped them by how they are added to the pan. In a cookbook I might have drawn lines between them. It helps my eye keep from skipping over something.