The objective for this week’s dinner menu is to stay grain-free. For this reason, I am including a cauliflower rice recipe, which makes a delicious low-calorie substitute for real rice. Add chicken poached in coconut milk infused with Asian flavours and you get a healthy and delicious dish.
Cauliflower is a non-starchy cruciferous vegetable with fantastic health benefits. It contains a surprisingly high amount of vitamin C: one cup provides nearly as much vitamin C as a medium size orange. Nearly all B group vitamins, copper, calcium and potassium are also present.
In addition, cauliflower contains a group of phytonutrients known as glucosinolates. Glucosinolates are sulphur-containing compounds responsible for pungent smell and flavour of cauliflower. They are stored in a “dormant” form inside plant cells walls. Food preparation, chewing and digestion break the cell walls down and bring glucosinolates into contact with myrosinase – an enzyme also stored in the plant tissue. Myrosinase triggers conversion of glucosinolates into a range of biologically active compounds. Several of these compounds (e.g. indole-3-carbinol) have demonstrated strong anti-inflammatory and cancer-protective properties.
The remaining 2 recipes will be posted shortly. In the meantime, I hope you can already see that healthy eating does not have to be bland, boring or repetitive. You can take a few good ingredients and mix them up to create healthy yet very flavoursome dishes.
Asian style poached chicken and cauliflower rice
2 chicken breasts
250ml coconut milk
250ml chicken stock
2 garlic cloves (sliced)
1 chili pepper (sliced)
2 cm ginger root (sliced)
1 lemongrass stick (broken into large pieces)
For cauliflower rice
1 large head cauliflower
1 table spoon coconut oil
1 onion (finely chopped)
1.5 cm ginger root (peeled and grated)
1 large garlic clove (minced)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 table spoons of chopped coriander
½ lime
- Make poaching liquid by combining coconut milk, chicken stock, chili, ginger, lemongrass and garlic. Bring to boil and let simmer to infuse (5 min).
- Poach chicken breasts until cooked through (approx. 20 min). Remove from heat and keep in the poaching liquid.
- Break cauliflower into florets and steam for 10 minutes. Pulse in a food processor in batches until it looks the size rice grains.
- In a frying pan melt 1 tablespoon of coconut butter. Sauté onion, garlic and ginger. Add a table spoon of water to avoid browning.
- Add the cauliflower rice and the soy sauce to the pan and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add coriander, remove from heat and squeeze the lime juice over it.
- Serve the cauliflower rice with haricot vert and poached chicken.
