Quick & Easy “Chicken + Bok Choy”
This is a quick and easy recipe that can be perfect for a weeknight dinner when you come home late or are tired to cook an elaborate dinner. It’s a leaner version of the famous “beef and broccoli” stir-fry because we are replacing the beef with chicken. Instead of broccoli, we are using bok choy – so just replacing one cruciferous vegetable for another. Yes, you read that right, bok choy is considered a cruciferous vegetable like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, arugula, collard greens, kale, and brussel sprouts.
A note on sweet potato noodles
I got these from T&T Supermarket in Calgary, Alberta but most East Asian grocery stores should carry these. They are grey in appearance and appear hard. Cook them first as per package directions by placing them in some salted boiling water for about 15 minutes or until tender.
Recipe Substitutions
For the Sweet Potato Noodles:
cooked rice
cooked quinoa
cooked rice noodles
zucchini noodles
or even pasta.
Vegans/Vegetarians/Plant-based Individuals: Feel free to substitute the chicken for tofu if you are plant-based. You may not need to cook the tofu for as long so keep an eye on it. I am thinking that extra-firm or firm tofu probably works best for this.
A Note on Cruciferous Vegetables and Your Health
Since bok choy is also a cruciferous vegetable and contains glucosinolates such as I-3-C (indole-3-carbinol), it is a great addition to meals to support estrogen detoxification. The glucosinolate content of bok choy is less than broccoli but as part of a healthy, varied diet it can add some benefits. I-3-C helps optimize the ratio of healthy 2-OH estrogens to more proliferative 16-OH estrogens. A better 2-OH:16-OH ratio of estrogen can help reduce some of those estrogen dominant symptoms like heavy periods, clots, and breast tenderness. Consider adding some cruciferous vegetables to your diet after ovulation when you are in the luteal phase (1-2 weeks before your period starts). Optimizing methylation pathways and gut health is also important to support estrogen detoxification because if you are not pooping regularly, this can make your body “hold” onto estrogen.
Estrogen and the male: While we think estrogen is all female, males can have increased amounts of estrogen too if they have a lot of abdominal fat tissue. Too much estrogen in males can contribute to “man-boobs”.
Curious to know what estrogen dominance may look like? Have a read here.
Need a little extra individualized support to help improve estrogen balance and/or hormone balance in your body…or do you just want to know your numbers and how everything is functioning? Speak to a naturopathic doctor.
In the meantime, enjoy this recipe and leave a note in the comments!
Chicken And Bok Choy Noodles
Ingredients:
Yields 1 Serving
· 2 cloves garlic
· 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast
· 2 tsp grapeseed or avocado oil
· 2 heads of bok choy
· 50-100g sweet potato noodles
· sesame oil
· Sriracha or any chili sauce
Method:
1. Peel and cut the garlic cloves into small pieces.
2. Cut the chicken breast into 1” chunks/cubes.
3. Heat the oil in a frying pan on medium heat. Once heated, add the garlic and let it sizzle for about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
4. Add the chicken, cover the pan and let the chicken cook on medium-low heat for about 9-11 minutes or until the inside is white throughout. You can give the chicken a stir and flip the pieces halfway through cooking so the one side doesn’t get too brown.
5. Remove chicken from pan once done and place it on a plate.
6. Trim the ends of the stalks of the bok choy heads. Give it all a rinse.
7. Place the bok choy in the same frying pan as the chicken was in and let them cook on medium heat, covered until they are almost tender.
8. Add the cooked sweet potato noodles to the pan, give it a stir. Cover and let it all cook until the bok choy is tender (dark green leaves and wilted in appearance). Add the chicken back in and let it all cook for about 3-5 minutes more.
9. Take off heat.
10. Place in serving bowl with a drizzle of sesame oil and your favourite chili/hot sauce.
