Such a simple meal, but oh so good.
I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with the chicken this evening. My first thought was to either grill it, or fry it. It would be placed over a bed of noodles that had been sautéed in a dash of garlic infused olive oil.
Instead, after staring at the stove for a minute or two, the meal came into focus. It would still be chicken and noodles, still a simple meal, but with a better flavor.
I got the chicken breasts, zucchini, yellow squash, onion, carrots, garlic, tomato, and a little jalapeño out of the fridge. The chicken breasts were pounded down to help them cook more evenly. I cut it into as close to a cube as I could get the chicken.
The hubby asked if he could help, so he was given the task of dicing the onions and tomatoes. After putting the water on to boil, I diced the zucchini and squash, minced the garlic and jalapeño, and finely shredded a carrot. The veggies were to add a little extra flavor and color to the sauce.
A little of the garlic infused olive oil was set to heat in my largest frying pan. When it was just shy of smoking, in went the chicken. Other than salt and pepper, I’m never sure what spices I’m going to add. Today it was a little oregano, a dash of sage, a couple pinches of turmeric, and whatever came out when I went to add a dash of Vietnamese cinnamon (meaning much more than expected), but that mistake actually added a good flavor. The last ingredient was to add several shakes of some soy sauce.
When the chicken was done, I placed it off to the side to rest. All of the veggies, except the tomatoes, were dumped into the juices left from the chicken to marinate and reduce. A little more salt was added to taste. It reduced for about five or so minutes before being added into the noodles. Next in went the chicken, followed by the fresh tomato for some subtle crunch.
A quick stir and voilà, it’s dinner!
Personal Reflections of a Middle-Aged Man 