Not Your Average Chicken Broccoli & Rice Dinner

This meal is every bodybuilder's dream, but my worst nightmare. I used to see people eat chicken, broccoli, and rice every day while I was in college because it was the "it" healthy meal. There was no other way to be healthy unless you were eating chicken, broccoli, and rice. Sure it's a macro-friendly meal, but it's just SO boring. But, I'm here to give it another try and spice it up for you all.

My Not-So-Average Chicken Broccoli & Rice Dinner is way tastier than the plain ones you've had before. I spiced up the chicken breast and added a delicious tahini dressing on top to put it all together. Like I said, it's a macro-balanced meal and can be perfect after a workout. You have your lean protein from the chicken breast, carbs from the rice, fiber from the broccoli, and healthy fats from the tahini dressing.

You can also choose to meal prep this recipe for a week's worth of lunches or dinners. Yes, the recipe looks long, but it's just me explaining every step of the way for you. You'll be able to batch this recipe in less than an hour. Future you will thank you for prepping your lunches/dinners.

So, let's get into it.

Yields: 1

Prep time: 20 minutes

Total time: 50 minutes

This recipe is dairy free and gluten free.

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Ingredients:

1. 1 chicken breast

2. 1 cup of basmati rice

3. 2 cups broccoli

4. Tahini

5. 1 lemon

6. Extra virgin olive oil

7. Salt, garlic powder, lemon pepper

Chicken marinade:

1. 1 TBSP extra virgin olive oil

2. 1 TBSP Greek yogurt

3. 1 TSP or so salt

4. Dash of ginger powder

5. ¼ TSP lemon pepper

6. ½ TSP paprika

7. 1 TSP garlic powder

8. ½ TSP dried oregano

9. ¼ TSP Aleppo pepper

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Instructions:

1. First, preheat the oven to 375.

2. Have your chicken breast defrosted and place it into a ziplock bag. Use a meat tenderizer to flatten the chicken breast (this ensures the chicken cooks evenly in the oven). Take it out and place it into a mixing bowl.

3. Season the chicken with the marinade ingredients above. Mix and marinate in the fridge (it's not too important to marinate if you're cooking in a rush, but marinating the chicken would allow for a more flavorful/moist chicken, so it's up to you).

4. Next, prepare the rice. Grab a small bowl and add in 1 cup of basmati rice. Pour in water and allow the rice to soak for up to 20 minutes. You are going to notice the water become very cloudy. This is the starch from the rice, which will allow you to easily digest the rice later. Drain the water, rinse the rice once more, drain again, and have it on the side to cook. Grab a small pot, place it onto the stovetop on medium high heat, and pour in 3 TBSPs of olive oil. Once the olive oil simmers, add in the rice and stir. Pour in the water. The trick is to have the water be 1 inch above the rice. It will be about 2 cups of water, but pay attention to the water levels the most.

5. Add 1 TSP of salt for now, stir, and cover. Turn the heat down to medium low. Avoid stirring to allow the rice to settle and absorb the water well. You can peak at the rice to see if it's absorbing the water well and becoming fluffy. All of the water should be absorbed around 15 minutes in. Add salt if you'd like (just taste a grain of rice). Once the rice is done, turn the heat off and remove it off that stove top. Allow the rice to settle to finish absorbing any of the excess liquid. Remove the cover and fluff the rice with a fork. Check to see if there is any extra liquid, and allow it to sit for another 5 minutes.

6. As the rice was cooking - prepare the broccoli. Chop into medium-sized chunks and place them onto a baking sheet. Coat the broccoli with extra virgin olive oil. Season with salt, lemon pepper, and garlic powder to your liking. Mix seasoning in with your hands. Add on the marinated chicken breast onto the same baking sheet. Bake in the oven until the chicken breast is white on the inside. The broccoli might finish before the chicken so you can take them out before and place them onto a plate.

7. For the dressing: add in 2 TBSPs tahini, juice of ½ lemon, and salt to taste into a mixing bowl. Mix until the dressing is a thick, even consistency. Dilute with a splash of water if necessary.

8. Let's put it all together: grab a serving plate and add in ½ cup of cooked rice, broccoli, and the chicken breast. Pour on the tahini dressing.

9. Mix and enjoy!

xoxo,

#averagearabgirl