Sunday, February 27, 2011

Lemon Brown Sugar Chicken or Tofu

I've been wanting to make Lemon Brown Sugar Chicken for a couple weeks, so ta-da!  I made it tonight.  The recipes are located here and here I made three 4oz cutlets (raw at 4oz.)  I already had dinner tonight, so i'll have one serving for lunch and have the next two servings for the next couple days.  I'm trying to eat meat once a day only.  I don't count eggs as meat though, I probably should but i'm taking baby steps. 


It's actually good!  It does sorta taste like sesame chicken!  I don't think I sauteed the meat in high enough heat...my amateur photos make the chicken look so nasty, but it's really not!!  I love sweet and tangy, it's totally my go to food that hits the spot.  The lemon and brown sugar cook nicely together.   There is also a firm tofu version made with orange juice instead of lemon juice.  Next time i'm going to try orange juice.  The ingredients are so simple.  I'll serve the chicken with 1/2 cup cooked brown multi grain rice that's still cooking on the stove and asparagus.  Asparagus is my veggie for the week.  What should I do next week...long skinny green beans (forgot what they're called!), butternut squash, or brussel sprouts?? 

*EDIT* - I finished making rice for the week and boiled one serving (5 spears) of asparagus.  Here is my lunch for tomorrow:


3oz/85g cooked chicken is only that big.  I paired it with a 1/2 cup cooked brown multi grain rice (4P+ for this brand.  I like my rice a little sticky and mushy) and plain boiled asparagus.  I'll add 1/2 tbsp of melted butter on it.  Yummo.  TRUST ME, the meat tastes even better after it's been sitting in the lemon sauce for awhile.


30 Minute Lemon Brown Sugar Chickenserves 4
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts or firm tofu (enough tofu for 4 servings)
juice of two large lemons (I used 1.5 lemons for three 4oz raw chicken)
1 T lemon zest
1 cup flour - (I only used 1 tbsp per 4oz of raw protein, it was more than enough coating)
2 tsp paprika (since you're using less flour, only use 1/4 - 1/2 tsp)
1 tsp sea salt (since using less flour, only use 1/4 to 1/2 tsp)
1.5 T canola oil - (I only used 1 tsp per 4oz of raw protein)
2 T brown sugar - (I used 1 tsp brown sugar per 4oz  raw protein)
Preheat oven to 350.
Using a meat mallet (or ice cream scoop), pound the chicken breasts thin. Set aside.
Combine the flour, paprika and sea salt in a cake or pie pan. Drop each chicken breast in the mixture and toss to coat completely.
Heat the oil over medium high heat in a large skillet. Drop each chicken breast in the oil and brown on both sides (should take only about four minutes). Remove chicken breasts and keep warm on a plate.
Pour the lemon juice in the pan and stir to deglaze. Put chicken breasts in a casserole dish and pour juice on top. Sprinkle with brown sugar and lemon zest.
Bake for thirty minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 165. (I baked the chicken for 20 minutes, then turned on the broiler for the last 7-10 minutes.  The lemon juice gets thicker and becomes syrupy.  If you like it saucy, then just bake it for 30 minutes and do not use the broiler.)

-Serve over brown rice/couscous with a side salad or veggie.

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