This recipe is really good. It may not seem particularly inventive, but it hits home on a week when you’re completely burned out on your meal cycle and you need something easy and flavor packed. You can grill the chicken breasts, but traditionally the chicken is skillet cooked in a cast iron pan. So if you don’t want to go outside in the rain … Not that this isn’t a big enough bowl of food, but by request of our children, we added caramelized onion & jack cheese quesadillas to the bowl. That’s optional. There were enough leftovers for salad wraps the next day, simply made by adding some mixed greens.
Let us know what you think of this one!
INGREDIENTS
Makes 6-8 portions
- 6-8 cloves fresh garlic, peeled, plus more for pepper confetti
- 2 large shallots, peeled and quartered
- 1/4 C fresh orange juice
- 1 tsp fresh orange zest
- 3 T extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 C fresh lime juice, plus 2 T for black beans
- 1 T fresh lime zest
- 1-1/2 T ancho chili
- 1 T dried oregano
- 1-1/2 T toasted cumin, plus more for beans
- 1 T smoked paprika
- 1 T Kosher salt
- 4 organic boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half lengthwise
- 2 T canola oil
- 2 (13 oz) cans organic black beans, drained
- 1/2 C veggie or chicken stock or water
- 1/2 C onion, diced
- 1 tsp fresh garlic minced
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 2 large organic poblanos, stemmed, seeds removed, julienne cut
- 2 large organic red bell peppers,stemmed, seeds removed, julienne cut
- 1 T extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large red onion, sliced
- 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced, plus more for black beans
- 1/2 C organic cilantro, chopped (1/4 cup for beans, 1/4 cup for garnish)
- 1/4 C organic scallions, chopped
- sliced limes and sliced avocado
In a blender add in garlic cloves, shallots, orange juice, olive oil, lime juice, ancho chili, oregano, cumin, salt and blend until completely pulverized. Set aside. Cut chicken breasts in half and gently pound to an even thickness. Place chicken breasts into large zip lock or bowl and pour blended ingredients over breasts, coating evenly. Keep in sealed bag for 60 minutes or up to 4 hours.
In a small stock pot on medium heat, add black beans, veggie or chicken stock, diced onion, minced garlic, paprika, 2 tablespoons lime juice. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes, reduce heat to low and simmer while chicken and peppers cook. When done simmering, season with salt and add in 1/4 cup of your chopped cilantro
Remove the chicken breasts from the marinade. Heat a cast iron pan to medium-high heat, add oil and working in 2-3 batches, sear chicken for about 3 minutes per side. Transfer cooked chicken to a sheet pan or platter and cover with foil to keep warm. Add more oil to pan and cook remaining chicken breasts.
In a separate sauce’ pan or cast iron pan on medium high heat, add olive oil, julienne peppers, onion and minced garlic. Saute’ for 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper.
ASSEMBLY
In a pasta bowl, add approximately 1/2 cup black beans, top with 1/4 of the cooked peppers & onion (scooping up the garlic and juices as well). Top with one of the chicken breasts halves and garnish with cilantro and chopped scallions. Served with sliced avocado and lime wedges.