Grilled Chicken Salad with Spicy Citrus Dressing

I’m not typically an impulse buyer at the grocery store. I have my weekly menu planning down to an art and do a great job sticking to my shopping list...until I show up at Trader Joe’s. They do too good of a job of creating new, reasonably priced items that pique my interest and before you know it, I’m buying things that weren’t on my list. This is how I ended up bringing home a bottle of Trader Joe’s Yuzu Hot Sauce, which touts itself as “simultaneously spicy and citrusy fragrant.”

For someone who can tolerate a mild-to-moderate level of spice, this sauce has plenty of kick for my liking. Using it in the salad dressing (that also doubles as a marinade) for this colorful salad is a great way to enjoy a little heat along with lots of other fresh flavors.

Grilled Chicken Salads with Spicy Citrus Dressing
Serves 4 

For the salad dressing: 
2 tablespoons Trader Joe’s Yuzu Hot Sauce
½ cup fresh orange juice (from 1 large orange)
Juice of 1 lime
1 tablespoon honey or agave syrup
1 teaspoon cumin
1/3 cup olive oil, plus extra for grilling
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 teaspoon lime zest
Salt and pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

For the salad: 
1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
¼ head green cabbage, shredded
¼ head red cabbage, shredded
2 carrots, grated or sliced into ribbons
1 red bell pepper, sliced thin
4 green onions, sliced
2 avocados, sliced

Combine ½ cup of the dressing with chicken breasts in a bowl or resealable plastic bag. Let chicken marinate in the fridge for 30-60 minutes. Refrigerate remaining salad dressing.

Once chicken has marinated, preheat the grill at medium-high heat. When you’re ready to grill, first oil the grill by oiling a folded paper towel, holding it with tongs and rubbing it over the rack. Use a fork or tongs to remove chicken from marinade and place chicken on the grill. Grill the chicken, flipping once, until cooked through, about 10-12 minutes. Transfer chicken to a platter or cutting board and let it sit for a few minutes before slicing.

Divide chicken and vegetables among four plates and top with remaining salad dressing.

Ready to dig into a satisfying salad?

While this Asian chicken salad recipe isn’t the most original idea I’ve had in the kitchen, it’s still pretty satisfying.

Sesame Chicken Slaw 
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons agave syrup
2 teaspoons minced ginger
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 head green cabbage, shredded (about six cups)
2 cups diced chicken breast
2 large carrots, peeled and sliced thin
⅓ cup chopped green onions
⅓ cup chopped cilantro
½ cup unsalted, dry roasted peanuts

Whisk lemon juice, soy sauce, agave syrup, minced ginger and sesame oil together to create dressing. Combine remaining ingredients in a large salad bowl and drizzle with dressing. Use tongs to toss and serve salad.

May 26 Salad

This is the Ahi Salad at 3 Fires Lounge. You’ve got sliced ahi, shredded red and green cabbage, grated carrots and cilantro vinaigrette. Not too shabby!

May 18 Salad

Here’s a good, colorful lunchtime salad with mixed greens, grape tomatoes, chopped carrots, English cucumber and shaved Parmesan and Romano cheeses. In order to add some zest to this mid-day meal I made an Italian-inspired dressing by whisking together ¼ cup red wine vinegar, ¼ cup olive oil (infused with dried red peppers and herbs), a teaspoon of dried oregano and some salt and pepper to taste.

Stew shakes off the shivers

It’s been quite chilly the past few days, even if we didn’t get the low snow everyone was buzzing about all week.
I wanted to make something hearty and low-
maintenance for dinner and decided to give beef stew a try.

This recipe is inspired by something I read the “Slow & Easy” slow-cooker book I have on loan from the library. I call it Beef Stew for Two because the ingredients didn’t take up my entire Crock-Pot. The recipe yields enough for two hefty servings, plus leftovers.

I put all the ingredients in my Crock-Pot before making breakfast to ensure plenty of time so the beef would be nice and tender. I like my stew thick like gravy and with lots of chunky goodness, and I ended up making a quick roux of flour and melted butter (2 tablespoons each) to thicken the stew about an hour before serving. I’ll be sure to add mushrooms the next time I make this stew.

Beef Stew for Two
1 pound chuck roast, fat trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 ½ cups chopped carrots
1 ½ cups chopped celery
½ yellow onion, diced
1 pound Russet potatoes, cut into small cubes
¼ cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup beef broth
½ cup dry red wine
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 bay leaves

In a 3.5-quart electric slow cooker, mix together carrots, celery, onion, potatoes, broth, wine, Worcestershire sauce and bay leaves.

Place flour, salt, pepper and meat in large resealable bag. Seal and toss until beef is coated. Empty bag’s contents into slow cooker. Cover and cook on low setting for 7-8 hour, until beef and potatoes are tender. Remove bay leaves before serving.

Soup for a winter’s night

It’s been quite windy, rainy and generally nasty the past couple days. This dreary weather calls for soup!

This was my first attempt at making minestrone, and I’m pleased with how it turned out. I just kind of picked out what I wanted in a soup, and am calling it minestrone because it sounded good when I was at the grocery store.

Midweek Minestrone
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 white onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 zucchini, quartered lengthwise and chopped
3 cups chopped green chard
7 cups beef broth (4 14-ounce Swanson’s cans did the trick)
1 cup small shell pasta
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 14-ounce cans diced tomatoes in liquid
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper, to taste
Grated Parmesan, for garnish

Heat olive oil in large pot over medium heat, and add garlic, stirring 1-2 minutes before adding onions. Stir another minute before adding carrots, celery, zucchini, Italian seasoning and bay leaf. Sauté vegetables for 4-5 minutes before adding chard to the pot. Stir another minute or two before adding broth, tomatoes, beans and pasta. Cover, and allow to simmer for 20-30 minutes, until pasta and vegetables are tender. Ladle soup into bowls, sprinkle with Parmesan and serve.