Chicken Breasts with Curry
Weeknight chicken breasts are transformed into a dish that's fragrant and spicy. It's very easy to prepare: just make a quick stew of butter, onions, celery, garlic, apple, tomatoes and curry powder. Blend that together in a food processor/blender until it forms a thick sauce, then combine with chicken breasts that have been lightly browned. Simmer until heated through and enjoy with a side of brown rice. Chicken breasts are an excellent source of lean protein and onions, garlic, apples and tomatoes all provide disease fighting antioxidants.
Makes: 4 servings
Time to cook: 40 minutes
Ingredients
3 tablespoons butter
½ cup chopped onions
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 apple, cored and finely cubed, about 1 cup
½ cup finely chopped celery
2 tablespoons curry powder
½ cup canned crushed tomatoes
¾ cup chicken broth, more as needed
1 bay leaf
Salt and freshly ground pepper
4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves, about 1¼ pounds total
4 tablespoons coarsely chopped cilantro
Cooking Instructions
1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the butter in a saucepan. Add onions, garlic, apple and celery. Stir until wilted.
2. Add curry powder, stir. Add tomatoes, chicken broth, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring often.
3. Discard bay leaf and put mixture through a food processor or blender and process to a fine texture. If necessary, add more chicken broth to just reach pouring consistency. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper.
4. Heat remaining butter in a nonstick skillet and add chicken. Cook over moderate heat until lightly browned. Turn pieces and cook about 5 minutes more. Do not overcook.
5. Pour sauce over chicken, bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro, serve.
Nutrition per serving
321 calories; 14 grams fat; 0 grams trans-fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram of polyunsaturated fat; 15 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 8 grams sugars; 35 grams protein; 726 milligrams sodium.
Recipe by Pierre Franey (NY TimesCooking)
