Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil
6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, any color, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup asparagus, cut into 1” pieces
1/3 cup frozen peas, thawed
2 cups cooked saffron rice (instructions below)
Remaining saffron rice liquid
1 tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes, or to taste
1/2 cup sundried tomatoes, chopped
For saffron rice:
In a sauce pan add 2 cups chicken broth; add 1/4 to 1/2
tsp crushed saffron. Season broth and
saffron mixture with salt to taste; add 1 cup rice.
Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook covered
until the rice has absorbed most of the liquid and is cooked most of the way
through (there should be a little liquid remaining and a slight crisp to the
rice). Remove from heat and set aside
(leave covered to keep warm).
Directions:
In a large, deep sauté pan (or paella pan if you have
one) heat olive oil; season both sides of chicken thighs and place in heated
pan. Cook until chicken is browned on
both sides and cooked most of the way through; remove from pan and set
aside. Place onions, bell pepper, and
garlic in pan; cook until softened. Add
asparagus and peas; cook until slightly softened. Add rice, remaining liquid, oregano, red
pepper flakes, and additional salt and pepper (if needed) to pan; stir to
thoroughly mix. Add chicken back into
the pan as well as the sundried tomatoes.
Cover and cook mixture until chicken is cooked through and vegetables
are crisp tender (about 5 minutes).
Serve warm and enjoy!
McCormick does sell
a fairly affordable bottle (0.06 oz) of saffron. It may not seem like a lot for the money, but
remember saffron is the most expensive spice in the world! You also do not need a lot of saffron for
most recipes. This takes only two small
pinches from the package so you WILL have enough for at least one more
recipe. If you cannot find saffron, you
can substitute turmeric (for color NOT taste).
Just use about 1 tsp (or 4 times as much) turmeric when substituting for
saffron. For this recipe do not boil rice with turmeric, simply add it to the pan and stir to coat when you add the rice.
Serves 6. 7 Weight Watchers points per serving (1 piece of chicken per person and 1/3 cup rice mixture).