I sort of have a love hate relationship with chicken.

It’s one of those foods that is usually safe to get when you eat out, and is pretty readily available, both positives. Also, it fits into my meal plan on both rest days and training days, so its easy for me too cook a big batch and be able to eat it every day of the week. However- whenever you end up eating something over and over and over… you can get pretty sick of it.

Enter my variations.

I definitely have had to come up with some creative ways to continue to enjoy eating chicken. And I have to say, I’m really in love with this recipe right now. I’ve actually made this five times so far!! And that would be in the last two months.

Yes- I eat a lot of chicken.

But what I really like about this recipe is that it already has the vegetable with it- so less cooking during the week for me! And, because it has no starchy carbs or much fat, it works for me whether I’m having a high carb or higher fat day- I can just pair it with starchy carbs on training days, or with some type of fat- cheese, coconut milk, etc on my rest/higher fat days. Right now, my week consists of four weight training days, which are higher carb,  lower fat, and two circuit/interval/hill sprint days, which are lower carb, higher fat, and one rest day that is also lower carb, higher fat. It makes every day different, and keeps things fresh and my body guessing- or so I hope

This is also a very adaptable recipe. I’ve used different kinds of thai curry pastes- red, yellow, green- all have been delicious. I’ve tried with extra seasonings to change it up, different vegetables, and using some chicken stock- but the recipe I’ve posted is the most simple. I think it’s a great base, and if you want it spicier/saltier/sweeter you can change it to suit your tastes. I’ve also had success using a few sprinkles of guar gum to thicken up the puree if it seems to thin, but I didn’t include that in the recipe, because its an optional extra.

Also, as you can see- I didn’t add any coconut milk to the puree to make it creamier. However, if you wanted a richer sauce, you could definitely add that in. I’m sure it would be delicious, but like I mentioned, I wanted this to be adaptable for my lower fat days.

Most vegetable puree recipes use a cauliflower base. However, since daikon radish is so readily available here in Korea, I’ve been using it, and am most satisfied! I find that it does need a little bit of sweetener though, because it is a bit of a bitter vegetable.

Curried Chicken with Creamy Veggie Puree

Ingredients:

1 kg chicken breast
3-4 tbsp thai curry paste
1 daikon radish (or cauliflower if you don’t have radish)
3-4 cloves garlic
2 onions
2 packets of stevia, or sugar equivalent
1 tsp sea salt

Method:

1. Rinse chicken breast and remove any visible fat.
2. Coat in chill paste and leave to marinate in fridge, the longer the better, overnight is good.
3. Peel and cut daikon radish into chunks. Add garlic cloves. Cook until soft. I used a frying pan with no oil, and stirred every few minutes, allowing the chunks to brown nicely.
4. Meanwhile, peel and chop onion.
5. Transfer cooked daikon to food processor and process. If you want to add more curry paste you can. Add stevia and salt.
6. Cook onion in frying pan, allowing to brown on medium heat, adding water as necessary to prevent sticking. After mostly cooked, add chicken breast. Brown both sides for about 3 mins per side, then pour in the daikon puree. Cover, reduce heat and continue cooking until breast is cooked through, 5-8 minutes.

Off topic- while I was shooting this, I dropped my camera, broke my lens and busted my viewfinder. Luckily, I was able to take it to a Canon repair shop in Gangnam, which is close to my house (yes, like the song) and have it repaired within a week, for about $150 CDN. Very happy I didn’t drop it into the veggie puree or something. Have you ever dropped your camera?