Chef Nicole Bunting, Ulliance’s new health and wellness expert, recently debuted her cooking skills at a Lunch & Learn for Ulliance employees in Troy. She previewed the same background and expertise she shares during demonstrations for Ulliance clients as she prepared a low-sodium Asian dish, Asian Glazed Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry over quinoa (recipe below).
Chef Nicole offers dynamic and informative on-site cooking demonstrations for Ulliance clients, through Ulliance’s Life Advisor Wellness programs. She understands the delicate balance of preparing healthy meals that are practical for working people, and shares these insights with employees to enhance their personal and professional lives.
Ulliance, headquartered in Troy, offers human resources, wellness and crisis management services along with Life Advisor Wellness programming to organizations across the United States, Canada, Mexico, South America and Europe. For more, visit ulliance.com/wellness-programs.
Asian Glazed Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry over Quinoa
Prep time: about 45 minutes
Serves: 2
Recipe from Chef Nicole Bunting of Ulliance, Troy.
INGREDIENTS
For the sauce:
• 1/2 orange, zest and juice
• 2-3 tablespoon low sodium tamari (depending on how salty you like it)
• 1-2 teaspoon chili paste (depending how spicy you like it)
• 1 tablespoon Honey
• 1/2 lime, juiced
• 2 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped or grated
For the quinoa
• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1 cup unsalted chicken stock (or broth)
• 1/2 orange (juice only)
• 1 pinch each of salt and pepper (to taste)
For the stir fry
• 2 chicken breasts, boneless skinless and cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 egg
• 6 mushrooms, stems trimmed then quartered
• 1/2 bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 small head broccoli, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 green onion, green part only, rinsed and sliced
• Extra virgin olive oil (for cooking)
STEPS
First, prepare the sauce. Mix all ingredients in a small bowl with a whisk. Taste and adjust flavor accordingly. Set aside to be added at the end.
In a small saucepan, add the quinoa and stock and bring to a boil. Once boiling, drop the heat, and let simmer, keeping an eye on it, until the liquid is almost completely absorbed (about 10-15 minutes). If it is still crunchy, add a little water and continue to simmer until tender, then turn off the heat, add a squeeze of orange and the salt and pepper (to taste). Set aside.
Place a large sauce pan on medium-high heat. Add a tablespoon of olive oil, let it heat for a few seconds, then add the chicken and cook through, stirring occasionally (about 7-8 minutes), then add the egg and stir quickly, mixing the egg and chicken and scraping the bottom of the pan till the egg is cooked (about 1 minute). Empty the saucepan into a large bowl.
Add a tablespoon of olive oil to the pan, and add the mushrooms and cook, shaking the pan occasionally to move them around, browning and making sure they don’t stick. Add the browned mushrooms to the bowl with the chicken/egg mix.
Add a tablespoon olive oil to the pan, and add the broccoli and bell peppers cook, stirring occasionally for 3-4 minutes, until they are warmed through and still slightly crunchy.
Pour the contents of the bowl back into the sauté pan, along with the sauce and quinoa. Turn the heat off, stir everything together and serve.
Nutrition Information (per serving): 498 calories, 40.5 g protein, 11 g fat, (3.3 g saturated fat), 169 mg cholesterol, 42 g carbohydrates, 314 mg sodium, 12 g sugar, 11g fiber