Recipes Can Meet Dietary Needs: Chicken

by Susan Braverman

Food as Herbs, Health, and Medicine

Fall Volume: 1996 Issue: 3(3) page(s): 13

We have had several requests for chicken recipes which meet dietary needs. In this issue we offer two chicken recipes, one roasted, the other stir-fried. Enjoy them both!

Roast Chicken
Ingredients:
1-3 pound fryer chicken
1/2 cup dry wine
1 teaspoon salt
1 whole anise (optional)
2 green onions, cut into one-inch strips
2 slices ginger
3/4 cup soy sauce
Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 450 F.
2. Mix everything, except the chicken, and add three cups of water.
3. Bring mixture to a boil.
4. Add chicken and bring to a second boil.
5. Cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
6. Turn chicken; turn heat off and let chicken stand covered for 15 minutes.
7. Drain chicken and place in a roasting pan.
8. Roast on lower rack of oven for thirty minutes, or until brown.
9. Cut chicken into pieces; garnish with parsley and/or green onions.
10. Make gravy with cornstarch and juice left in pan.
To modify the recipe and reduce the sodium and or the fat: Remove the salt and reduce the soy sauce to one-quarter of a cup. This reduces the sodium. One can also remove the salt and use one-quarter of a cup of low sodium soy sauce to reduce the amount of sodium even further. If you do not eat the skin of the chicken, you will also cut the total fat and the saturated fat considerably.

Stir-fried Pineapple Chicken
Ingredients:
1/2 pound boneless chicken
1 pound can of pineapple tid bits, drained.
2 Tablespoons peanut oil
1 cup chicken broth or stock
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 Tablespoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon brandy
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
Preparation:
1. Cut chicken into thin slices.
2. Heat the peanut oil in the bottom of a wok or fry pan, then add the pineapple and the chicken broth, and cook for one minute; then add the chicken.
3. Make a thick paste of cornstarch diluting it with one-quarter cup cold water. Add the sesame oil, brandy, soy sauce and sugar and add this mixture to the chicken.
4. Simmer for two or three minutes, stirring constantly, then serve.
Note: To modify this recipe and reduce the sodium and/or the fat, use low sodium broth and low sodium soy sauce. Decrease the fat content by using less peanut oil and less sesame oil.

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