Recipe: Spicy Thai Peanut Chicken with NO CARB Noodles!

I tried thick “fettuccini” tofu shirataki noodles a few years ago in a Hungry Girl recipe and was totally disappointed – but since hearing about them all over again, I decided to try them again, this time in a thinner version, and folks --- we have a winner! These no carb, 20 calorie per serving noodles were a fantastic addition to this spicy meal.  Peanut chicken is one of my favorite dishes, and now I have it guilt-free!  This recipe is a bit spicy – if you don’t appreciate spicy thai flavor, well, this probably needs to be modified for you.  Maybe try 1/2 the chile sauce with an extra TBS of PB2… 

I thought this was delicious, it was a winner in our house!

3 tablespoons reduced-sodium chicken broth

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 tablespoon chopped fresh lemongrass

2 teaspoons Thai chile-garlic sauce/paste

2 teaspoons honey

2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

2 tablespoons PB2 reconstituted with an additional tablespoon of low sodium chicken broth (visit Bell Plantation’s website for more info – you can use regular PB but the calorie/fat content will change!)

1 teaspoon cornstartch

8 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed in 3/4” pieces

1 package of tofu shirataki noodles (Slim Noodles, Miracle Noodles, etc…can be found by tofu, which is in the produce section of my grocery store…don’t let them scare you!)

1 package of steam-in-the-bag mixed veggies of your choice (if they come in an olive oil sauce like mine did, just rinse it off)

1/3 cup crushed peanuts

Whisk together broth, lemon juice, fish sauce, lemongrass, chile sauce or paste, honey, ginger, garlic, reconstituted PB2 and oil in a small bowl.

Place cubed chicken and small amount (about 1/4 of sauce, just enough to coat chicken) of sauce in Ziploc bag.  Reserve remaining sauce. Allow chicken to marinate for 30-60 minutes.

After marinating, stir cornstarch into reserved sauce.  Coat large wok or frying pan with a healthy amount of Olive Oil cooking spray.  Heat on med-high. When pan is hot, drop marinated chicken  onto pan.  Cook, stirring/tossing frequently, until chicken is slightly browned on all sides and no longer pink.

While chicken is cooking, nuke veggies – reduce time by about 2 minutes so you don’t end up with mush at the end.

Rinse noodles according to package directions.

When chicken is cooked through, add veggies and noodles to skillet along with the reserved sauce, and stir-fry until sauce thickens and everything is heated.  Garnish with crushed peanuts.

Warning: This dish is spicy, but damn delicious!

Makes 2 large servings. Per serving: 261 calories; 7 g fat, 30 g protein.

Recipe: Almond Crusted Salmon & Broccoli Cheese Sauce

Another “serves 2” recipe. I love fish, and I love nuts, so why not combine them?! I’ve also subbed walnuts for the almonds and added other herbs in place of the cilantro – it’s a recipe that’s easy to play with!

2 – 4oz. wild caught salmon filets

2 cloves of garlic

1/2 cup of almonds

2 tbs. fresh cilantro

1 TBS +/- olive oil

½ tsp. kosher salt

Dash of pepper

Season salmon filets with salt and pepper, place on foil lined baking sheet.

Toss garlic, almonds, and cilantro into a food processer until well ground and blended.

Drizzle olive oil and process until a thick paste forms.

Spread equally on salmon filets

Bake at 450 for 20 minutes or until fish is flakey.

2 servings. Each serving has 350 calories, 20 g fat -heart-healthy Omega-3, 6 g carbs, 27g protein.

(The bread that is on the plate in the picture is just a half Sandwich Thin with I can’t believe it’s not butter spray and garlic powder broiled for a few minutes – fish & bread have to go together in our house! 50 calories.)

Pardon the crappy picture, but this was the walnut crusted salmon (the bread was baking):

The broccoli cheese sauce was fantastic! And low in carbs, full of protein, and it made the broccoli more than edible! (I'm still not a huge fan of broccoli, but it was pretty tasty with the cheese sauce!)

3/4 cup Westsoy Organic Unsweetened Soy Milk

2 wedges Light Original Swiss Laughing Cow

1/2 c. fat-free Cheddar Cheese

1/2 tsp cornstartch

salt and pepper to taste

Wisk cornstarch into soy milk in medium saucepan.  Add Laughing Cow and salt and pepper, heat on medium heat, stirring near constantly until wedges are melted and mixture begins to thicken.  Add salt/pepper if desired, and fat-free cheddar – stir constantly until mixture is melted and desired thickness is achieved.  Quick, easy, and man, does it make broccoli awesome!

4 servings (about 1/4 cup each).  Each serving has 62 calories, 3g fat, 7g protein.

Recipe: Thai Mango Chicken with Broccoli

I adapted this recipe to have a bit more sauce – to cover up the broccoli (I’m still getting used to it) and to serve 2 people because leftovers go bad in our house.  Feel free to double or mess around with it as you see fit, but this is my version and man, this was a divine meal! The serving was pretty big, too, for not a lot of calories!

2 tablespoons fish sauce

Juice of 1 lime

1 1/2  teaspoons cornstarch

1-2 teaspoons Splenda brown sugar blend (less if your mango is ripe…more if it is not)

2 teaspoons Olive Oil, divided

8 oz. boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1” cubes

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger

1- small red chile pepper, stemmed and chopped (you could use 1/2 tsp. of crushed red pepper flakes if you wish)

2 1/2 cups bite-size broccoli florets

1/4 cup water

1 mango, peeled and sliced

1 bunch scallions, cut into 1/2” pieces

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil, preferably Thai

1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

1 lime for garnish

Combine fish sauce, lime juice, cornstarch and Splenda in a small bowl.

Heat a teaspoon of oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Add chicken; cook, until just no longer pink.

Add the remaining teaspoon of oil, garlic, ginger and chiles (or crushed red pepper) to the pan. Cook, stirring, until it starts to smell really good - about 15 seconds. Add broccoli and water; cook 2 minutes, or until broccoli is of desired tenderness (I like mush, so mine was more more 5 minutes…). Add mangoes and scallions; cook, stirring, for 1 minute until heated through. Add the reserved sauce and chicken; cook, stirring, until the sauce is thickened and the chicken is heated through. Stir in cilantro, basil and mint. Serve with lime wedges.

Makes 2 servings.  Each serving has: 195 calories; 5 g fat; 20 g carbohydrates; 21 g protein; 4 g fiber; 531 mg sodium.