For the last three weeks, the majority of our meals have come from either the hospital vending machine, a Chick-fil-A drive-thru, or Disney World.
Talk about extremes. (And my favorites were obviously from Disney World!)
After getting back from our trip this week, I spent most of yesterday limping around the kitchen for some make-ahead meal prep. I whipped up a big batch of quinoa to be used in stew and for a winterized version of our favorite salad, shredded a massive amount of chicken portioned in half-pound baggies for the freezer, and popped open the jar of Cookwell & Company Two-Step Green Chile Stew that came with this month’s HEB Primo Picks.
Because a girl can only feed her family Funyuns and waffle fries so many times before feeling a little like a terrible person. And a girl only needs to hear her 3.87 year-old say, “Momma, I can have broccoli for a treat today?” once before really feeling like a terrible person.
But I actually had a plan for the post-vacation and post-vending machine detox. A quick-fix green chile stew beefed up into a healthful, hearty one-bowl meal with shredded chicken, navy beans, quinoa, pico de gallo, and a dollop of fat-free Greek yogurt on top.
It’s healthy, delicious, and just a hint of some low-grade heat from the green chiles. Minimal prep time – admittedly not as fast as swiping a card and punching D12 – but maximum nutrition. And that’s just something you can’t get out of a vending machine or from a drive-thru window.
Green Chile Chicken & Quinoa Stew
Ingredients
- 32 oz jar Cookwell & Company Two-Step Green Chile Stew
- 8 oz "leftover" chicken, shredded*
- 1 cup cooked quinoa
- 1 can navy beans, rinsed and drained
- For serving:
- 3 plum tomatoes, diced
- 1 small jalapeno, seeded (or not) and diced
- 1/3 cup chopped red onion
- Juice from 1/2 lime
- Salt
- Handful of cilantro
- Sour cream or plain yogurt
- * I make "leftover" chicken in the oven in a foil pouch - 2 breasts per pouch at 425 for 20 minutes.
Instructions
- In a medium/large pot, heat the green chile stew over medium heat.
- Add the shredded chicken, cooked quinoa, and navy beans, simmering until heated through.
- Stir together the tomatoes, jalapeno, red onion, cilantro, lime juice, and salt and set aside.
- Ladle the soup into bowls, top with a generous scoop of pico de gallo and a dollop of plain yogurt or light sour cream.
Notes
Yields: ~6 servings
Estimated time: 30 minutes
This recipe was developed in conjunction with H-E-B and I was provided ingredients as well as compensated for my time. Messy fingers, stretchy-waisted pants, and baby-Elmo-clogged-toilets are all mine. You can find H-E-B on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. And if you’re as lucky as we are, 4 locations within a 5 mile radius.