I’ve been embracing my domestic side, as you may of noticed. Last week, I was craving a Southwestern-style chopped salad for dinner and threw together this flavorful meal in no time at all. Not only did it satisfy my taste buds’ yearning for something spicy, it also filled me and Mike up with two meals-worth remaining for leftovers! Talk about a two-for-one deal, or should I say two-for-two? I don’t know what was better, the look on Mike’s face when he came home from a long day of work with this meal set up on our balcony (with a side of cut up watermelon–our favorite!) or having this protein-packed bagged lunch the following two days. I’ll settle for a tie.
Ingredients
1/2 jalapeño
1 plump tomato
1 large carrot
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 red bell pepper
1/2 teaspoon minced onion flakes
1/2 teaspoon cumin
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup of dry black beans, soaked
3/4 lb of chicken cutlets
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
Dash of cayenne pepper and paprika
Coconut oil to cook the chicken and drizzle over salad
Ground pepper, sea salt (or liquid aminos/nooch!) to taste
To start off, let me explain my reasoning for the dried black beans. They are cheap. Plus, by refraining from the easy, peasy canned version, you save yourself from all that added sodium. I also think they taste BETTER, more organic and natural! Simply follow the instructions and prep them in big batches to add a punch of protein to your favorite soups, salads, etc. (Get ready because on my post-grad, newly-employed-but-still-relying-on-my-parents-to-be-fed budget this whole “affordable” theme will remain consistent on da blog…embrace it.)
Back to the recipe. I started by cooking the chicken breasts in a coconut oiled pan and one clove of minced garlic.Would it have tasted better and more flavorful if I had marinated the chicken? Obviously but who has time for that? Not me that night but in my defense, the coconut oil and garlic worked swimmingly with the cilantro and spiciness later on. Ok I’m getting ahead of myself…
While the chicken is cooking, shred your carrot, chop up the cilantro, garlic and jalapeño and dice the red pepper and tomato. Drain the beans and combine all the ingredients in a large bowl. When the chicken is done, shred it with your hands and add in the spices–cumin, minced onion, cayenne pepper for more heat, salt/pepper, etc. I then drizzled a little extra coconut oil, alongside the apple cider vinegar (both have amazing nutritional benefits!) over the salad before chilling in the fridge/serving.
This photo kills me. Sometimes a photo really is worth a thousand words! Mike was hungry so getting him to sit still and look at the camera for all of five seconds was no easy feat. I also reminded him to chew his food, not inhale it…ahem, twice. I feel like I’m talking about a toddler. I swear he is 24-years-old, not four.
Sprinkled with Love,
Lauren
