Enjoy a warm bowl packed with lean chicken, crunchy broccoli, and fluffy quinoa. This meal is quick, nutritious, and fits many diet plans.
Active time: 15 minutes | Total time: 30 minutes
Chicken, Broccoli & Quinoa
Ingredients
- Half a medium lemon
- 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 12 ounces boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite‑size pieces
- 1 ¾ cups water
- 1 cup dry quinoa
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 bag (16 oz) frozen broccoli florets, thawed
Directions
1. Grate about one teaspoon of lemon zest and squeeze one tablespoon of lemon juice. Set aside.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium pot over medium‑high heat. Add the chicken pieces and stir occasionally. Cook until the chicken is fully done and reaches 165°F (74°C), roughly 5 minutes. Remove the chicken and keep it warm.
3. Pour the water into the same pot, scraping any browned bits from the bottom. Stir in the quinoa, salt, and bring to a boil. Cover, lower the heat, and simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Scatter the thawed broccoli over the quinoa, cover again, and cook until both the quinoa and broccoli are tender and the water is absorbed, about 5 minutes.
5. Turn off the heat. Add the cooked chicken back into the pot and let everything sit for 5 minutes.
6. While it rests, whisk the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil with the lemon juice and zest. Drizzle this mixture over the bowl and stir gently. Add a pinch of black pepper if you like.
Serves: 4 (each serving = 3 oz chicken, ¾ cup cooked quinoa, 4 oz broccoli)
Nutrition per serving
- Calories: 462
- Total Fat: 20 g (Saturated 3 g)
- Protein: 35 g
- Carbohydrates: 34 g (Fiber 6 g, Sugar 3 g)
- Sodium: 782 mg
- Potassium: 559 mg
- Iron: 14 % DV
- Vitamin C: 9 % DV
- Calcium: 9 % DV