Seriously, are you all eating quinoa yet? A protein-rich whole grain that cooks in less than 15 minutes and is endlessly versatile. In this recipe quinoa adds some heartiness to a chicken and tomato stew.
This particular quinoa recipe really embraces the idea of eating less meat in general. With only one chicken breast to four servings, most of your meal is made from grains and vegetables, and of course some feta. In our house, this is one of the ways we save money and eat less meat. This also makes it affordable to buy nicer meats. Not a fan of this idea? Double the meat.
Chicken and Quinoa Stew with Spinach, Tomatoes and Feta
(serves 2-4)
Put the stock in a large saucepan or dutch oven and bring to a gentle simmer. Rinse the quinoa thoroughly. Add the quinoa and keep the broth at a simmer. In the meantime, heat a medium skillet to medium heat. Add the onions and fry for 3 minutes, transfer the onions into the broth. Add the zucchini to the skillet along with the oregano and chill flakes, continue frying for 2 minutes, and then add the garlic. Cook until fragrant, stirring regularly, it should be about 3 more minutes. Transfer this to the broth as well.
Once the quinoa has been cooking for at least 5 minutes, add in the tomatoes. (You don't want the acid in the tomatoes to prevent the quinoa from softening, which is why you shouldn't add it at the beginning.) Add the chicken to the skillet, and fry until just cooked through. Add to the broth along with the spinach, parsley and feta. Simmer everything together for 5 minutes. Check for seasoning and add salt and freshly ground pepper as necessary. Serve with a dash of lemon juice stirred in.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Made this last night for dinner and was very impressed!
I made mine a bit thicker (more of a porridge consistency) by cooking a bit longer, plus my tomatoes were leftover from another recipe and didn’t have much juice left. It worked well since my hubby isn’t a big broth fan anyway and it still looked and tasted amazing!
Loved the flavour combination and the fact that it was easy and low cost to make.
Thanks Melissa, as always. Hopefully good food for that growing baby of yours!
(I am a huge broth fan
)