Monthly Archives: April 2020

April 5, 2020 · 5:08 pm

Quarantine Cuisine Day #5 – Kung Pao Chicken

I craved Asian cuisine today, so I made Kung Pao Chicken and brown rice in the Instant Pot. I didn’t have hot peppers, hoisin sauce, or chili purée. Without the typical red chili peppers, my dish was milder than take-out. As for the condiments, I found recipes online and made my own.

We were pleased with the results. I focused on ingredients I had (fresh ginger root and fresh cilantro) and followed a Betty Crocker (Cookbook) recipe for low fat Kung Pao Chicken. I used frozen chicken thighs and modified it for the Instant Pot or any brand multi cooker.

RECIPE—Instant Pot Kung Pao Chicken for Two

  • 2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • 1 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 1 Tbsp cold water
  • 1/4 cup dry roasted peanuts
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 cup chopped celery
  • 1 cup chopped onion
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp. Grated ginger root
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth (from cooking the chicken)
  • 1/2 tsp. sugar
  • 2 Tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tsp Chile purée
  • 2 Tbsp hoisin sauce
  • Pressure cook chicken thighs in 1/2 cup water ten minutes. Allow pressure to drop on its own.
  • Mix a slurry of all other ingredients except broth, onions, celery, and peanuts. Set aside.
  • Remove chicken from pot and cut into 1” cubes. Reserve broth.
  • Using sauté mode, sauté onions, peanuts, and celery in 1/2 cup of reserved broth for five minutes.
  • Add chicken and stir.
  • Add the slurry and turn off Instant Pot. Stir until sauce thickens.
  • Serve immediately over 1/2 cup cooked brown rice.
  • (optional) Garnish with fresh chopped cilantro.
Instant Pot Kung Pao Chicken

Leave a comment

Filed under Healthful Eating

Tagged as , , ,

April 5, 2020 · 2:37 pm

Quarantine Cuisine Day #4 – Chef Salad

Previously, I mentioned we have our main meal at lunchtime and prefer a light dinner. For the next several days, dinner is a variation of the chef salad. Light, yes. Quick? Well … not so much.

Unless you buy bagged salad mix, you must first wash and chopped your produce. (Quarantine tip: save the chopped ends of lettuce in water and grow another serving) I prefer chopping lettuce and slicing tomatoes with a knife, but a food processor or Kitchen Kutter makes quick work of shredding carrots, slicing celery and onions, and whatever else you want to add.

Romaine micro-gardening

I usually add chopped boiled egg, a bit of Parmesan cheese,and a meat to finish the salad. The meat can be a shredded cooked chicken breast, thawed frozen cooked shrimp, chopped lunch meat, or tonight’s selection, canned tuna.

Tuna Chef Salad

A salad is a good way to get a couple of servings of vegetables, and it doesn’t have to be boring. Add grated zucchini, sliced fresh mushrooms, or even fruit. We plan to enjoy salads until we run out of fresh produce. That’s when my 30-Day challenge will get, uh, challenging.

Leave a comment

Filed under Healthful Eating

Tagged as , ,

April 3, 2020 · 2:51 pm

Quarantine Cuisine Day #3 – Grits

Breakfast. I’m a firm advocate of eating breakfast. It’s the most important meal of the day because you are “breaking” the “fast” of sleep.

I’m also no fan of fasting. Those diets that involve fasting are not for me! Just as with any meal, I will need to be creative with breakfast if I stick with my vow to stay home 30 days.

We still have eggs and egg substitutes, so today I combined the two to make a lightened version of scrambled eggs. We have plenty of Jimmy Dean turkey sausage patties in the freezer, so I added those to the menu. But the star of today’s breakfast was grits.

I blogged previously about making grits in my pressure cooker.(No Grits , No Glory)

Today I needed only a cup of grits so I adjusted the recipe accordingly.

INSTANT POT GRITS FOR TWO

  • 1 cup water in the pot of the cooker (the grits are cooked in a bowl on the rack within the pot of the cooker)
  • 1/4 cup old fashion grits
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/2 Tbsp (1 pat) unsalted butter
  • Salt to taste
  • Cook grits under pressure 5 minutes.
  • Turn off cooker. Allow pressure to drop completely on its own.
  • Carefully open cooker and remove bowl using silicone mitts or potholders.
  • Stir grits vigorously.
  • Serve immediately

This recipe produces one cup, or two half-cup servings. If you need more or larger servings, simply double the recipe.

In conclusion, I strive to vary our menus while meeting this thirty-day challenge. I don’t want my quarantine routine to turn into a rut.

Leave a comment

Filed under Healthful Eating

Tagged as , , , ,

April 2, 2020 · 3:22 pm

Quarantine Cuisine Day #2 – Fiesta Salad

Day #1 wasn’t challenging as I had stocked up Tuesday with a pickup order from Walmart. Today I found myself with aging produce and a pound of ground turkey nearing its sell-by date.

Lunch is typically our main meal, so today I used these items to make two large servings of fiesta salad. It may contain Fritos chips, but it’s surprisingly healthful.

Brown and season the ground turkey.

Basically a salad of chopped lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and (optional) cilantro, the only cooking was browning the ground turkey. The cheese sauce was cheddar cheese soup heated in the microwave oven, thinned with 1/4 cup milk.

According to my recipe builder, we each ate 556 calories, including 57 g. protein and 18 g. fat. and 6.2 g fiber. It’s a fun dish as well as a good use-up of produce.

It’s early in the month, so we’ll see how the thirty-day challenge progresses. So how’s your quarantine going?

1 Comment

Filed under Healthful Eating

Tagged as , , , ,