School has begun again! Can you believe it? Back to the carlines, back to homework and the after-school activities, and back to the long nights. So little time to get everything done, ya know what I mean!?!
This is the time of year I start meal-planning again. I have to or we’ll be eating cereal for dinner every night (which is delicious, but balance!). So for this weeks first dinner, I started with this chicken fried rice. You can prep this ahead of time, it cooks quickly and stays yummy in a thermos if you’re bringing it with you to those late night practices. I also love how healthy this is with a good amount of protein, carbs and veg.
To get ahead of the dinnertime craze, I precut up the chicken and all the veggies. That way, I was able to just throw them in the pan to cook. I also used rice that we had leftover from the weekend (leftover rice is best for this recipe). Once you have everything cooked, it’s ready to pack-up. I ate mine within an hour of packing it up, one of my kids ate it within 2 hours and the other one ate it within 2 1/2 hours. It was great for all of us, so this is a great packable meal for on the go.
I’m always looking for quick weeknight, non red-meat meals, so if you have any to share, let me know in the comments below! Happy cooking!
Chicken Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce divided, plus additional to taste
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into bite-sized 1-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1/2 medium-sized yellow onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 3 cups chopped fresh vegetables of choice (I used 1 red bell pepper plus a small head of broccoli)
- 2 ½ cups cold cooked rice
- 1/2 cup green onions, chopped (about 2-3 medium)
Directions
- In a small bowl, combine 2 tablespoons soy sauce with chicken to marinade. Cover and set aside.
- Heat 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Add 1 tablespoon butter and swirl to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the eggs. Cook without stirring until they barely begin to set, about 20 seconds. With your spatula, scramble and break the eggs into little, bite-sized pieces. Continue to cook, stirring constantly now, until eggs are just cooked through but not yet browned, about 1 additional minute. Transfer eggs to a bowl and set aside.
- Return the skillet to the heat, and increase the heat to high. Let the skillet warm until it is nice and hot, about 1 minute. Add sesame oil and the other tablespoon of butter, and swirl to coat. Add the yellow onion and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add the chicken. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is mostly cooked through, but not all the way through (about 4 minutes).
- Add the fresh vegetables and the remaining 1 tablespoon soy sauce. Cook until they are crisp-tender, about 4 to 5 minutes.
- Add the rice and continue cooking, stirring constantly and breaking up any remaining rice clumps, until the mixture is heated through, about 2 minutes.
- Add the reserved eggs and green onions. Cook and stir until the mixture is completely heated through, about 1 minute more.
- Enjoy immediately!
Season Generously 