When I fall in love with a dish, I always want to reach for my thinking cap and create a healthy version of it. This may sound to you like culinary madness but this week my mission in the kitchen has been to create a simple Japanese chicken teriyaki recipe, filled with nutritious ingredients yet still full of flavor and one that genuinely looks the part.
Stir-fries are great options for mid-week fuss-free meals especially if you're time-poor yet want something nourishing and filling. My latest recipe can easily be converted to a slow cooked version by skipping the marinade and placing chicken and your choice of vegetables in your slow cooker, pouring the sauce on top and slowly cooking it for about 6-8 hours on low.
Eating healthily doesn't mean depriving yourself or eating less, it just means eating better and smarter. The main ingredients to step away from when crafting a healthy home-made teriyaki marinade are modified corn starch, sunflower oil, breadcrumbs and supermarket-processed Asian sauces which are usually full of preservatives and sugar. You can still enjoy a robust salty taste with a hint of sweetness from a low sugar, low sodium version, just by including ingredients like wheat-free tamari, rice malt syrup and coconut oil.
The benefit of stir-fries is that you can veg them up and showcase seasonal ingredients by including anything you have lying about in your fridge. I used broccoli and red and green capsicum which are high in vitamin A and C, as well as potassium, which is important for the proper function of all cells, tissues, and organs in the human body. When in doubt just let your healthy ingredients crowd out other ingredients and add lots of greens or colors of the rainbow.
This recipe is a corker for the whole family and the richly infused teriyaki sauce is a nutrient boosting box and dice sauce which can be used to take dishes up a notch. Slap it on top of grilled chicken wings or legs for game day snacks or pan fry salmon with it and position on top of a sky high crunchy slaw.
Try my chicken teriyaki bowl, bursting with goodness and vitality and let me know what you think?
Chicken Teriyaki Bowl
Serves 4
Ingredients
To make the chicken marinade
•4 chicken breast fillets cut into bite-size pieces or strips
•2 TBS wheat free tamari
To stir fry
•11/2 TBS coconut oil
•2 cloves garlic sliced
•1 inch ginger grated
•1 small red capsicum sliced thin
•1 small green capsicum sliced thin
•1 small head broccoli chopped
•1/2 small red chili deseeded and diced fine
•3 spring onions, chopped (reserve some for garnish)
•1 TBS toasted sesame seeds
Teriyaki Sauce
•1/4 cup wheat free tamari
•3 TBS rice malt syrup or sweetener of choice
•2 TBS apple cider vinegar
•1 1/2 heaped tsp arrowroot flour
•1 TBS coconut oil (melted)
Method
•Place chicken in a medium bowl and pour the tamari over the top to cover. Stir if needed. Set aside for 1 hour to marinade
•Heat a large wok or frying pan over medium heat
•Add 3/4 TBS coconut oil and swirl the pan to coat
•Add garlic, ginger and chicken and cook until lightly browned and cooked through
•Transfer to a bowl and set aside
•Add remaining coconut oil to the pan and then add capsicum, broccoli, chili and spring onions, (reserving some spring onions for garnish) stirring until cooked about 5 minutes
•Meanwhile whisk all sauce ingredients together in a medium jug
•Return the chicken to the frying pan and pour sauce over the top stirring until sauce thickens, about a minute
•Spoon into waiting bowls and top with toasted sesame seeds
•Serve alongside brown rice
You can find more recipes on my website here.