chicken fried wild rice
I totally forgot about wild rice until I made those stuffed apples in December. Then the half empty bag of rice was sitting there staring at me from my cupboard. Which is what Kale did for months every time I opened the refrigerator. I made kale chips a few years back and the leftover fresh kale just glared at me until I had to toss it. This throwing away of food bothers me sooooo much so I just kept buying it (and growing it) until I found a way to like it. It’s my own personal brain hack – applying the perfect amount of pressure helps me to create and try, try again.
The wild rice takes about an hour to make so it’s perfect for a prepping day, or when you have other things to do. It cooks itself and stores easily in the fridge until you want to create something delicious.
Prep your chicken, squash, rice, and kale ahead of time and this dish can be ready for dinner in 5 mintues. FIVE MINUTES, people. This is why I neeeeed to set myself up for the week, a little pain on one day is my gain in the days to come. We all loved it and Tim suggested it could be great as a cold salad too. Smart guy.
Here you go!
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked wild rice according to your packaged directions about 2/3 cup dry
- 1 cups of cooked chicken diced about 1 chicken breast
- 1 cup of chopped squash or sweet potato
- 1 teaspoon of olive oil for roasting squash
- 2 cups of kale leaves finely chopped stems removed
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil
- 1 clove of garlic crushed
- 2 tablespoon of coconut aminos or soy sauce
- salt & pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons of dried cranberries optional
- coconut aminos or soy sauce to pass
Instructions
- Prep the wild rice, chicken, and kale. Set aside or refrigerate.
- To prep squash, chop into small cubes and put on a cookie sheet. Drizzle 1 teaspoon of olive oil over pieces. Using clean hands make sure every piece has a little oil on it as well as the pan. Roast in a 400° oven for 15-20 minutes until tender.
- When ready to combine, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil in a large sautè pan on medium high heat until it is thin and moves easily to coat your pan bottom.
- Toss in your crushed garlic and stir it around for about 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add rice and chicken and let it fry for about 30 seconds, stirring.
- Next add squash letting it fry for 15 seconds, then stir, fry for 15 seconds, then stir.
- Stir in the kale and cranberries if you are using. Let it fry and start to wilt as you continue to stir, about 1 minute.
- Last, drizzle your coconut aminos in the pan, give it a stir to combine and immediately cover for 1 minute to create a little hot steam for your kale to cook a bit more.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve with extra aminos, soy sauce, and/or hot pepper sauce on the side.
This post contains affiliate links to products I know and love. I recommend any of them for this recipe!
My family of 5 ate this for lunch. For dinner I’d probably double it for the 5 of us and add a salad or more roasted vegetables on the side. One onion averse friend of mine might just notice there are no onions in this recipe, eh hem. This is very unusual for me, but you could add scallions to the stir fry section of your recipe. Or steamed brocolli. Or cauliflower. Last but not least and listed as optional above, dried cranberries. While I didn’t include them in the nutritional facts below, look what I found at Whole Foods:
Cranberries NOT sweetened with sugar and corn syrup! This made me very happy and I might just be adding a little tablespoon here and there.
You get the picture. Just prep it and make yourself something simple and satisfying in 5 minutes. Done.
Enjoy!
~Heather
Speaking of prepping, learn more about #sundaysetup over here!
Last Updated on June 15, 2022 by Heather Bursch
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