Easy Creamy Chicken Curry with Sweet Potato and Spinach

Ok, now here is the secret to making this delicious curry dish so EASY......store bough yellow curry!! Whaaaaat, you say?!! Believe me when I say that the store bought version is shockingly delicious, you might even mistake it for restaurant style; oh and it cuts out so many minutes off your prep time. Now, if you have extra time to spare, and you like cooking your meals from scratch, I have included a link to a homemade curry recipe from Pinch of Yum. For the rest of you who are short on time, Safeway ( at least ours in Petaluma does) now carries a variety of curry paste options which is what I used in this recipe. I also included two amazon links incase your local grocery store does not carry the. Red and green curry also work, so don't stress on color here; shoot for convenience and what is readily available to you.


Ingredients:

2 Tablespoon cooking oil (vegetable work great)
1-2 shallots chopped (I used one because that was all I had)
2-3 chicken breasts cut into bite size pieces
1 package Trader Joe's Ribboned Sweet Potatoes or 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
3-4 cups fresh baby spinach
3 Tablespoons curry paste ( store bought or homemade, see links below)
1 14 oz. can full fat coconut milk
3/4 cup chicken stock or water ( I bet veggie stock works great too)
1/2 cup chopped peanuts
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 Tablespoon fish sauce ( or enough to taste)

Directions:

1. Start your rice or cauliflower rice if you are serving (highly recommend)
2. Heat 1 Tablespoon oil over medium high heat. Add your bite size chicken pieces and cook until barely pink in the middle. Remove and place in bowl. Set aside.
3. Heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium high heat and stir fry your shallots until fragrant and fairly soft. Do not brown. Add sweet potatoes and mix with shallots. Add curry paste and stir until well incorporated. The store bought curry is on the drier side, so just focus on evenly disrupting it.
4. Add coconut milk, fish sauce and broth. Mix well so curry dissolves. Let simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. The sauce will begin to thicken.
5. Add chicken and cook for 2-3 minutes.
6. Add spinach  and half the cilantro and mix in. Cover pan and cook until spinach is wilted. Maybe another 3-5 minutes.
7. Serve over rice or cauliflower rice and top with chopped cilantro and peanuts.


Homemade Yellow Curry Recipe:

http://pinchofyum.com/easy-homemade-yellow-curry-paste

Buy Curry on Amazon Here:

Yellow curry:
https://www.amazon.com/Mae-Ploy-Yellow-Curry-Paste/dp/B000EICISA

Red curry:
https://www.amazon.com/Thai-Kitchen-Paste-Curry-Red/dp/B007QR5EPQ/ref=sr_1_6_s_it?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1484282518&sr=1-6&keywords=curry+paste

Asian Shredded Chicken

Serves 4.

Ingredients:

2 Chicken breast
1 Tb. Arrowroot Powder or Cornstarch
1/4 cup water
2 Tb. garlic chili sauce
1/3 cup Tamari or Low Sodium Soy Sauce
1/3 cup Ketchup
2 Tb. Brown sugar
2 Tb. rice vinegar
1 Tb. toasted Sesame Oil
1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder or 3-4 garlic cloves minced
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. ginger powder or 2 tsp. freshly grated
1/4 tsp. ground pepper
1 onion sliced into half moons

Garnishes:
toasted sesame seeds
chopped green scallions

Directions:

Boil chicken breasts for 15-20 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes and shred with two forks. Set aside. Sauté onions on medium heat with a tad of vegetable oil. Salt and pepper. Cook until brown and tender. Set aside. For sauce, add all your ingredients into a bowl until mix well. Arrowroot powder can get lumpy, so mix quickly. Add to a sauce pan. Heat on medium heat until mixture is thick. Make sure to keep stirring while heating or mixture will stick to pan. The sugar cooks quickly so remove from heat once thickened. Add sauce to shredded chicken and sautéed onion and mix until chicken and onions are coated with sauce. Add a  a bit of water if sauce is too thick to mix with chicken. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and green scallions. Serve in lettuce cups or over rice.

Pan Roasted Chicken with Green Olives and Garlic

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 ounces thinly sliced pancetta, cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips
One  package Chicken thighs with bone and skin

One package Chicken drumsticks with bone and skinKosher salt
Pepper
12 unpeeled garlic cloves, crushed
6 thyme sprigs, plus chopped thyme for garnish
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup (3 ounces) pitted green olives ( I use cocktail olives; rinse olives with water to remove salt)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
Baby arugula  for serving

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 450°. In a large enameled cast-iron casserole, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add the pancetta and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pancetta to a paper towel–lined plate.
Rub the chicken with the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Add half of the chicken to the casserole, skin side down, along with half each of the garlic, thyme sprigs and rosemary. Cook over moderately high heat, turning, until golden brown all over, about 
5 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a large plate. Repeat with the remaining chicken, garlic, thyme and rosemary. Return all of the chicken and aromatics to the casserole.
Roast the chicken until the breasts are just cooked through, about 15 minutes. Transfer the breasts to a platter. Roast the chicken legs for 10 minutes longer, until cooked through. Add the chicken legs and garlic to the platter; discard the herb sprigs and garlic skins.
Pour off all of the fat from the casserole. Add the white wine, olives and pancetta and cook over moderately high heat, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom, until the wine is reduced by half, 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk in the butter and season with salt and pepper. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and top with arugula, chopped thyme.

Options:

Cut up one whole chicken (3.5-4 pound)

Brazilian Paprika Chicken Stew

Ingredients:

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces

• ½ pound apple chicken sausage, sliced

• Juice of one lime

• Salt and freshly ground pepper

• ⅓ cup vegetable oil

• 1 large onion, chopped

• 3 garlic cloves, minced

• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste

• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup water

• 2 bay leaves

• 1 tablespoon thyme leaves or 1 bunch fresh thyme 

• 15 oz. can low sodium white beans

• 1 tablespoon gluten free flour
• Parsley for garnish-optional

Directions:

In a large bowl, toss the chicken and sausage with the lime juice and season with salt and pepper.
Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a dutch oven, over medium high heat, and brown the chicken and sausage, about 2 minutes per side. Depending on the size of your pot, you will have to work in 3-4 batches, adding more oil when necessary. Remove the chicken/sausage to a plate.
Lower the heat to medium, add the remaining oil and sauté the onions and garlic until softened, about 3 minutes. Then, add the paprika and the tomato paste and stir to combine.
Pour the chicken broth and water, add the bay leaves and thyme. Once the liquid starts boiling, reduce the heat to low and let the stew simmer for 30 to 40 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and almost falling apart.
With a ladle, remove a bit of the broth into a cup and stir in the flour to make a roux. Return the roux to the pot and add the beans. Cook for 10 more minutes until the sauce has thickened.
Taste for seasoning and add more salt and/or pepper, if necessary. Remove the bay leaves and thyme stems. Garnish with parsley.

Optional:

Serve over rice or french bread for dipping

Bangkok Chicken Coconut Curry Rice Noodle Bowls

Ingredients:

Coconut Curry Sauce:
1 tablespoon high heat oil ( grape seed oil)
2 shallots,chopped
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced 
2 1/2 tablespoons red curry paste
1 14-ounce can regular coconut milk
½ cup reduced sodium chicken or veggie broth 
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon hot chili paste 
2 1/2  tablespoons fish sauce
2 1/2 tablespoons Tamari soy sauce

For the Bowls:
6 ounces rice noodles 

2 chicken breasts chopped into bite size pieces
1 tablespoon high heat oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
1-2  cup chopped broccoli florets
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup chopped asparagus
1 cup shredded purple cabbage

1 zucchini chopped
sesame seeds for topping
limes for serving
a handful of fresh basil for serving ( julienne the basil)

Directions:

1. Noodles: Soak the noodles in a bowl of cold water. Start this right away - they need at least 20 minutes or so of soaking. When they're soft, drain and rinse.
2. Sauce: Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the shallots and ginger; stir fry for 3-5 minutes. Add the curry paste; stir fry for 1 minute. Add the coconut milk, sugar, chili paste, fish sauce, and soy sauce. Simmer for 15- 20 minutes or until slightly thickened. Continue on simmer until veggies and chicken are cooked.
3. In a large skillet, heat the oil over high heat. Add chicken and cook 4-5 minutes until just barely cooked. Add a a few sprinkles of Tamari and fish sauce and toss around chicken. Remove chicken and set aside. Add a but more oil. Add the onion, and cook for 2 minutes. Add carrots, zucchini, broccoli, and asparagus. Stir fry for about 5 minutes until the broccoli and asparagus are bright green. Add the noodles and toss around in the pan with the vegetables. Add back chicken to pan. Add the sauce and toss together until just combined (if you cook it too long at this point, the noodles might get too sticky). Serve topped with the purple cabbage and sesame seeds and a squeeze of lime and basil leaves.

Paleo Mac and Cheese

Ingredients:

1 head Cauliflower ( I use yellow Cauliflower)
2 Tb. Grass-fed Butter
½ tsp. Celtic Salt
¼ C. Water
2 T. Grass-fed Butter
1 Small Sweet Onion, diced
½ tsp. Garlic Powder
¾ tsp. Ground Mustard

Cayenne pepper to taste
1 tsp. Celtic Salt
3/4-1 can Coconut Milk

1/4 cup Nutritional Yeast
1 Egg Yolk
Pepper, to taste

2 Tb. grated parmesan cheese ( optional depending on diet restrictions) 

2 Tb. grated parmesan cheese for topping

Directions:

Cut the stalks and leaves off of the cauliflower and break it into small pieces. Add the cauliflower to a large sauté pan as well as the 2 T. butter, ½ t. salt, and water. Place on medium/high heat and cover with a lid. Let the cauliflower stead inside the pan for about 5 minutes, until mostly tender. Check the water levels every few minutes to make sure that it doesn’t all evaporate. When almost tender, remove the lid and let the cauliflower sauté for a minute or two, or until lightly caramelized in spots. Turn heat off, cover, and keep warm until ready to toss with the cheese sauce.

Cheese Sauce:
Heat the 2 T. butter in a saucepan over medium/high heat. Add onion, garlic powder, mustard, and salt to the melted butter.
Sauté for 5 minutes, or until onion is translucent. Add the can of coconut milk to the saucepan and bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the onion is tender and the coconut milk has reduced by ⅔ and is thick. Add the nutritional yeast, cayenne and additional salt to blender. Pour the onion and coconut milk into a blender and puree until very, very smooth. Immediately add an egg yolk and parmesan cheese to the puree and blend well. The hot puree will cook the egg which will thicken the sauce and give it a rich texture.
Check seasonings and add more salt or pepper to taste.
Pour over the hot cauliflower and toss to coat. I place mixture in oven safe dish and sprinkle parmesan cheese over the top. Place in oven on Hi-Broil until lightly browned,
Serve.

*This sauce is so tasty and can be poured over any veggie or chicken dish. 

Zucchini Lasagna

Ingredients:

2 large Zucchinis
Celtic salt to taste
Pepper to taste
1/2-1 Tb. Garlic Powder
1/2-1 Tb. Onion Powder
1 lb. ground beed ( 80/20)
1 small diced green bell pepper
1 diced yellow onion
1 cup tomato paste
1 can (16oz) tomato sauce
1/4 cup red or white wine ( I had white wine opened and used that)
2 Tb. chopped fresh basil ( if you have dried only that works too, just use slightly less)
1 Tb. chopped fresh oregano ( if you have dried only that works too, just use less)
1 egg
1 (15oz) container of low fat ricotta cheese
1 (16oz) packaged frozen chopped spinach. thawed and drained
1 lb. sliced white mushrooms
8 oz. shredded mozzarella
8 oz. grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.
2. Slice zucchini lengthwise into very thin slices. I use a vegetable peeler. Sprinkle slices with salt and set aside to drain in a colander.
3. To prepare the meat sauce,  heat up pan to medium heat and add ground beef. Cook and stir for 4-5 minutes. Add salt and pepper for seasoning. Add in green bell pepper and onion and stir in with meat. Add salt and pepper along with a sprinkle of garlic powder and onion powder. Add mushrooms. Once meat is no longer pink add tomato paste and tomato sauce along with wine, oregano, basil. I like to add more seasoning at this point. Use your best judgement. Always taste test as you go along. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer sauce for 20 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. In a mixing bowl stir egg and ricotta with a pinch of salt. Make sure these are mixed well.
5. The zucchini produces a ton of moisture so I like to lay out a towel and lay flat the zucchini slices. I then pat dry with a paper towel.
6. Thaw and drain your spinach. I like to use a paper towel to remove extra liquid

To assemble lasagna:

7. Spread 1/2 of the meat sauce onto the bottom of the pan, then create a layer with the zucchini slices. Next add 1/2 the ricotta mixture, then layer with the spinach, followed by a layer of 1/2 the mozzarella cheese. Repeat by layering the remaining sauce, zucchini slices, ricotta mixture, and mozzarella. Sprinkle the top with an even layer of parmesan cheese. Cover with foil.

8. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil; raise temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 15 more minutes. Let stand for 10-20 minutes before serving.