Sunday Suppers: Citrus-Marinated Mojo Chicken

One of my favorite Sunday afternoon activities is putting together a meal that I couldn’t normally tackle on an average weeknight. In my eyes, Sunday recipes take time because I have time, and I love to spend some of it cooking.

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In the winter months, when I can barely fathom the idea of leaving my apartment, I love a hearty beef stew that cooks on the stovetop for hours, filling the house with it’s amazing aromas. Now that the weather’s warmed up though, I’m not too keen on staying in the kitchen all day but I don’t want to completely give up on my Sunday night tradition. My solution? A meal that marinates all afternoon but doesn’t require an extensive cook time.

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I learned this Mojo Chicken recipe last Summer when a good friend of ours was visiting New York City. He thanked us for our hospitality on his last night by cooking us all a huge batch of this flavorful, citrus-infused chicken. Once the plates were cleared and he was all packed up, I refused to let him leave without giving me the recipe.

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Aside from the wonderful flavor, I also love that this recipe is very easily adaptable. My friend’s original version called for an entire chicken, which he broke down into individual portions before marinating and roasting. We’re big white meat eaters in my house though so my recipe is for 4 chicken breasts, plenty for dinner for two and lots of leftovers. If you prefer dark meat instead, you can easily substitute chicken thighs but be sure to adjust the cooking time. Thighs tend to cook faster.

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4 large bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts

2 limes, zested and juiced

1 lemon, zested and juiced

1 cup orange juice

1/2 cup white vinegar

1/3 cup olive oil

5 cloves garlic, smashed

1 large onion, thinly sliced

a handful of fresh cilantro, roughly chopped

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Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and stir to combine. Add in the chicken, making sure sure all of the meat is submerged. Cover with plastic wrap and allow the chicken to marinate for 3-6 hours in the refrigerator.

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When you’re ready to start cooking, pre-heat your oven to 450F.

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Place the marinated pieces of chicken, skin side up, onto a baking sheet with high sides. Add all the onions to the tray as well and pour some of the marinade onto the baking sheet. I like about a half inch layer of liquid in the pan. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper and place the tray in the oven.

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Cook the chicken in the oven 35-50 minutes, until the internal temperature of the thickest part of the chicken reads 165F. I swear by a digital meat thermometer for things like this, I think it’s really difficult to know if a chicken is fully cooked without one and definitely recommend purchasing one. I use it for everything from chicken to pork and steak. It makes cooking a bit less stressful when you know all of your proteins are cooked to the perfect temperature. Nothing raw, nothing overcooked.

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Remove chicken from the oven and let rest for 5-10 minutes. Serve with the onions and some of the pan juices.

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Nutrition Info

Serves 6

Calories: 441 • Carbs: 8.6g • Fat: 12g • Protein: 37g • Sodium: 265mg • Sugar: 5g

Chicken Pad Thai

Before I moved into this, my second New York City apartment, I had a fabulous Thai place right on my block. Right in front of the grocery store, actually. It was so good that Q and I got sucked into bypassing our grocery run for some pad thai on more than one occasion.

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Then, just like with most restaurant food, I decided to take a stab at making pad thai at home and see if I could give it a more healthy spin. I played around with a few recipes but ended up settling on my own version with this sauce as inspiration. While I still appreciate my beloved Brooklyn Thai spot, I love that I can whip up this healthier version in less time than it takes to call for takeout.

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 6 oz wide rice noodles

1 chicken breast, cut into small cubes

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1 tsp canola oil

1/3 cup shredded carrots

1/3 cup broccoli florets

2 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp lime juice, plus wedges for serving.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add noodles and cook according to package directions. Once cooked, drain the noodles and, rinse with cold water.

Meanwhile, whisk together brown sugar, lime juice, and soy sauce in a small bowl. Set aside.

While the noodles are cooking, heat canola oil in a large skillet or wok over med-high heat. Add chicken and season with salt and pepper. Cook until brown, about 3-4 minutes. Add in the carrots and broccoli to the pan and stir to combine. Cook for another 1-2 minutes.

Next, add the noodles and soy sauce mixture to the pan. Stir constantly until the noodles absorb the sauce and begin to soften. If the noodles still seem a bit stiff after all of the sauce has been absorbed, just add in a bit of water (about a tablespoon). Then cover the pan to allow the noodles to cook for another minute or two. Serve with lime.

Nutrition Info

Serves 2

Calories: 460 • Carbs: 87g • Fat: 3g • Protein: 19g • Sodium: 662mg • Sugar: 15g

Veggie-Packed Chicken Fried Rice

Who doesn’t love chicken fried rice? When ordered from your favorite takeout menu though, each serving really comes up short of the protein and veggies making it more of a side dish than a main course. Obviously I thought it needed a bit of updating.

I’ve turned this take-out staple into a quick, easy and healthy weeknight meal option that comes together in minutes. The secret? Prepping everything in advance. The cook time on this recipe is just under 10 minutes which leaves no time for chopping once you start cooking. Just chop all of the vegetables, measure out the rest of your ingredients and you’re good to go.

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To start, add some oil to a large pan or wok over medium high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the chunks of chicken and season with salt and pepper. Saute until brown and cooked through, about 5-6 minutes.

Remove the chicken from the pan and add in all of your vegetables. Feel free to use any vegetables you like or have on hand. I keep a variety stocked in my fridge and freezer so I threw in a little bit of everything. You could easily sub a bag of mixed frozen vegetables for fresh if you’re short on time time, just be sure to defrost them first. Now back to the recipe. Saute the veggies until tender, 2-3 min. If they seem to be taking a while to cook through, I put a lid on the pan to speed things up. They should only need another minute or two.

Next up, the garlic and ginger. I use a microplane to grate mine in so there aren’t any large chucks in the fried rice. Stir to combine and cook until fragrant. 1-2 minutes. Move the vegetables aside and add in the egg/oil mixture. Stir to softly scramble, about a minute.

Then everyone into the pool. Return the chicken to the pan, add the rice and pour the soy sauce over it all. Stir to combine and finish with the scallions.

Don’t forget: Prep everything in advance. You’ll thank me later.

1 chicken breast, chopped into small chunks
1 ear of corn, cut from the cob (or 1/2 cup frozen corn)
1/2 cup frozen peas
6 baby carrots, chopped
7 snow peas, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 cup chopped broccoli
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 tablespoon of fresh ginger, minced
1 egg, beaten with a teaspoon of oil
2 to 3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 cups of cooked brown rice, preferably day old (it absorbs the flavors better)
2 tablespoons scallion, thinly sliced

Nutrition Info

Serving Size: about 1/2 cup (Serves 5-6)

Calories: 163 • Carbs: 24g • Fat: 4g • Protein: 10g • Sodium: 326mg • Sugar: 3g