Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Coconut Pecan Chicken

I tried this recipe last night along with Carolyn's Thai Coconut Rice (that I added below) and it was so good. The chicken was so close to being wonderful, even after my tweaks, but we both thought it needed a little something to make it worth eating again- and we found it! Make this recipe along with this peanut sauce and it will be an amazing and easy dinner!


1 1/2 c. plain fat-free yogurt or sour cream
1/4 tsp. curry powder
2/3 c. sweetened coconut flakes
2/3 c. panko (Japanese-style bread crumbs)
2/3 c. finely chopped pecans
garlic or garlic powder to your liking (I used about 1-2 tsp. garlic powder)
1 1/2 lbs. chicken breast, cut in 1-inch wide strips

Directions:
1- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2- Put yogurt or sour cream in a small bowl and mix with curry powder, set aside. In a shallow pie plate, combine coconut, panko, pecans, and garlic.
3- Dip chicken strips in yogurt or sour cream mixture to cover, then roll in panko mixture. Place strips on an oil-sprayed baking sheet. Spray top of chicken.
4- Bake 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350, and bake 15 more minutes. Check that coating browns but does not burn. If desired, broil 2 minutes for an even crunchier top.


1/4 c. honey
1/4 c. smooth peanut butter
1 tbsp. crunchy peanut butter (optional) (I used all crunchy)
3 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tbsp. rice vinegar (I used a little less so it wasn't as vinegary. If you use all of it, let it sit in refrigerator for a little while to mellow out the flavor.)
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 tbsp. sesame oil (I used 1 tbsp. sesame seeds fried in some of the olive oil)
2 tsp. minced fresh garlic
1 tbsp. minced fresh ginger root
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (I omitted this for a sweeter sauce)

Directions:
Stir all ingredients together in a small bowl. (Easy enough)


Thai Coconut Rice
2 c. rice
2 c. coconut milk
1 3/4 c. water
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. dry shredded coconut
1 bunch cilantro
1/4 c. coconut


Directions:
Cook in rice cooker until liquid is mostly absorbed. Stir occasionally if necessary because the milk settles at the top and the bottom may burn. While your rice is cooking, put a small amount of oil in a frying pan and lightly toast your 1/4 c. coconut over medium heat. Chop up your cilantro. When you serve the rice, serve the toasted coconut and cilantro on top.

1 comment:

  1. I really liked the peanut sauce and coconut rice with this. They went great together. Here is what I want to remember for next time: Add more garlic powder to the chicken (at least 2 tsp). Don't leave the sour cream mixture too thick on the chicken before you coat it in the crumb mixture. I did 1/2 tsp curry in the sour cream mixture, and it could have used a little more for my tastes. Cook at 400 for 20 minutes, then 375 for 15-20 minutes. I also added another tsp of minced garlic to the peanut sauce. We like garlic around here. I used 1 teaspoon of ginger instead of the minced ginger root in the sauce. Dustin LOVED this recipe! Thanks Nicole!

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