Beef Stew

I believe everyone would have at least once in their lives have a beef stew and it is always meant to be eaten hot with bread chunks or rice. But me been me, I need to have something healthy and what do I do? Whip it up with quinoa and trust me, it was equally as yummy just as it was healthy.

Go whip it up.....

Here's my stew happily boiling. Looks yum, huh?

Ingredients:-

- 500g beef chunks

- 1/2 a bottle of Master Food Red Wine and Garlic Marinade

- potatoes, cut into chunky cubes

- carrots, cut into chunky cubes

- celery, cut into cubes

- 1 cup stock (beef or vegetable)

- 1 cup water

- salt and pepper 

- cooked quinoa

1. Heat oil and fry the beef till it is semi cooked

2. Add the potatoes and carrots to the beef and fry a while

3. Add the marinade and mix well

4. Add stock and simmer

5. If too thick, add some water, cover and continue to simmer until the carrots and potatoes are soft. 

6. Stir every now and then and then add the celery and cook for another 5 minutes.

7. Serve over cooked quinoa.

And here's the yummy dish served over quinoa. All healthy, all yummy....a quick meal for the home.

Maple Crusted Chicken Over Quinoa & Asparagus

I have been trying to cook some healthier meals at home with lesser of a carbo because as Asians, we tend to have lots of rice as rice is our staple food and trust me, it ain't good for the hips and all the cardio in the gym ain't gonna be enough unless I'm prepared to cardio every single day which I'm not. Lol....

And as the saying goes, it is not just about the exercise but also what we eat. So, I started us on quinoa as a rice replacement but maybe twice a week because quinoa here in KL is expensive.

So here is another yummy recipe which is truly tried and tested.

Ingredients:-

- 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast

- 1 tbsp olive oil

- 1 clove garlic, minced

- 1 tbsp maple syrup

- 1/4 tsp crushed red or chili pepper

- 1/4 tsp thyme 

- 1/4 tsp oregano

- 1/4 tsp paprika

- 1 cup cooked quinoa

- 6-8 asparagus spears, chopped 

- 1/2 cup steamed corn

*the above ingredients to put into ziplock bag is for one chicken breast and if you're cooking more chicken breasts like 3-4, repeat into 3-4 different ziplock bags*

1. In a ziplock bag, mix the olive oil, maple syrup, garlic, chili flakes, thyme, oregano, paprika with some salt and pepper together. Put one piece of chicken breast into bag and shake it around to evenly coat the chicken. Repeat the same for the other chicken breasts in other ziplock backs, following the same ingredients used.

2. Sauté your asparagus in olive oil, with some salt and pepper for taste. Cook for a few minutes.

3. Using the same pan, cook the chicken till its done.

4. Meanwhile, after the quinoa is cooked, toss it with the steam corn and cooked asparagus.

5. Scoop some quinoa onto a plate and serve a slice of cooked chicken breast on it.

See??? Such an easy recipe which is protein packed to the brim and good for the hips. Do give a shot and feel free to drop me a line on how it turns out to be.

Bon appetite......