For some of us, going vegetarian is not an option, despite the current trends which try to prove more and more that vegetables and fruits are the healthiest way to stay one’s hunger. If you long for healthy recipes that include some meat and are easy to prepare, your grill and some chicken breast are your best friends. The healthiest option when buying meat is to go for free range, cereal-fed chicken, because it contains less chemicals and less stress hormones than the meat coming from birds that were raised in batteries.

This is a simple recipe that goes well for either lunch or dinner, healthy, tasty and budget-friendly.

Ingredients:

• 1 chicken breast, skinless, boneless, sliced in 6 (slices don’t have to be even, just make sure each of them is thick enough to go through the procedure I’m going to describe below)
• 1 pound button mushrooms (preferably fresh, but canned are also OK)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled, cut in quarters
• 1 small carrot, grated
• 1 big onion, chopped small
• Salt, pepper to taste

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Serves 2

Method:

Beat the chicken breast slices carefully, then sprinkle them with salt and thyme on both sides. Oil and preheat a stove top grill. Grill the meat 4-5 minutes on each side, then put it in a covered dish. Heat a little olive oil in a large frying pan, then add the chopped onion and about two tablespoons of water. Cook the onion for 5-6 minutes, then add the button mushrooms. In case you use fresh mushrooms, make sure to wash them thoroughly, to remove all dirt, but don’t detach the stems. Although they need a longer cooking time, whole mushrooms are better than sliced ones, because they preserve their taste better. After you added the mushrooms, mix them well with the onions, add the garlic, add some salt and pepper, then cover the pan and continue cooking for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Arrange the grilled chicken pieces on the plate, add mushrooms and pour some mushroom sauce with onion bits, then sprinkle some raw grated carrot all over the food. There’s no need for side dish, but if you’re keen on having one, a beetroot salad could make a good companion for this grilled chicken breast with mushrooms recipe.

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This is an easy chicken stew recipe which takes relatively little time to prepare. The secret to make it fast is to cut everything small and to choose vegetables that either can be eaten raw or don’t require long cooking time. The beauty of such foods is that you can discover healthy recipes each and every time by simply choosing a vegetables mix rich in those nutrients you’re most interested in. One of the vegetables that can contribute to preparing a healthy dish is celery root, also known as celeriac, turnip rooted celery or celery knob. When consumed raw, celery root belongs into the low glycemic index group of foods, however when cooked, it’s a high GI food. Despite this, celeriac is still beneficial for diabetes sufferers, because of its low sugar content. The following chicken stew recipe is suitable for people who love potatoes but have to stick with a low-carb diet. It’s an easy recipe for two people, but you can easily adjust quantities if you have more mouths to feed.

Ingredients:

• 1 chicken breast, skinless, boneless, cut in small, thin stripes (the smaller, the better, because the faster it will get cooked)
• 1 big onion, finely chopped
• 2-3 green onions, cut small
• 1 medium sized celery root, peeled, diced small
• 1 medium size potato, diced small
• 1/2 can diced tomatoes in tomato sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• Red hot chili pepper powder (or freshly ground red chili flakes)
• Salt, pepper

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Serves 2

Cooking method:

Take a large pan or a wok, heat the oil, then stir fry the onion with a little bit of added water, so the oil doesn’t get too hot. Depending on your ability to chop onions, you’ll need to stir fry it for 4-8 minutes (even 10 minutes if you’re clumsy and you chopped it really big, but I’m sure that if you got to read this, then you can finely chop an onion, so 4-5 minutes of stir frying should be enough). When the onion gets soft and almost transparent add the potatoes and the celery root pieces and cook everything together for 5 minutes. Add the chicken breast chunks and continue cooking, stirring quite frequently in the first two minutes, then cover the pan and let the food simmer for about 10 minutes. Now add the tomatoes in sauce, the green onion, garlic, chili, salt and the pepper, stir well and continue cooking for another 10 minutes with the pan covered. Serve hot, with a sprinkle of freshly ground pepper on top.