Hoisin Chicken Rice Bowls

Today was a personal chef cookdate for a new client of mine. The family picked 2 beef dishes, 2 chicken dishes, and 1 seafood dish. A pretty typical menu for my clients. Off to the grocery store at 8 a.m. with my shopping list in hand. Imagine my shock when I was reaching for boneless, skinless chicken breasts, and the price was a whopping $5.29 per pound. Ouch!!

I was glad I had some frozen chicken breasts in my freezer for my family dinner tonight. Hoisin Chicken Rice Bowls are an ideal make ahead dinner for a busy night. Diced chicken, red peppers, mushrooms, and garlic are sauteed in a little peanut oil and seasoned with teriyaki and hoisin sauce. Serve in a lettuce lined bowl filled with rice and topped with the flavorful Asian chicken.

Hoisin Chicken Rice Bowls are a go-to meal for my family. I make a big batch because it tastes great reheated, and I can get a few meals out of it. Make a triple batch and park some in the freezer for later. Imagine your delight when you pull your homemade dinner from the freezer and all that needs to be done is heat it up. The simple things in life make me happy.

Hoisin Chicken Rice Bowls


serves 5

1 tablespoon peanut oil
1 large red pepper, diced small
1 10-ounce package baby portebello mushrooms, diced small
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced small
1 8-ounce can water chestnuts, drained, diced small
2 teaspoons teriyaki sauce
4 tablespoons hoisin sauce
3 cups of hot cooked rice
romaine lettuce leaves
sesame seeds
scallions, thinly sliced

Heat peanut oil over medium high heat in a large saute pan. Add red pepper and mushrooms and saute for 5 - 6 minutes until tender. Add garlic and saute an additional minute. Add chicken to pan and cook for 6 - 8 minutes or until cooked through. Stir chicken and red pepper mixture occasionally while it cooks. Add water chestnuts, teriyaki sauce and hoisin sauce and stir to coat the chicken and vegetables. Continue cooking until heated through.

To serve, line a single serving size bowl with romaine leaves. Top with a large scoop of rice, some of the hoisin chicken, and a sprinkle of the sesame seeds and scallions.

Alternately, serve the rice and hoisin chicken on top of a large romaine lettuce leaf and eat like a taco similar to my Maple-Dijon Pork Tenderloin and Sweet Potato Lettuce Wraps.