Cooking time – Under 1 hour

Serving size – 2-3 people

1. Intro
2. Preparation
3. Ingredients
   1. Appliances and pans
4. Cooking
   1. Rice Cooker
   2. Cauliflower
   3. Chicken Breast
   4. Veggies
   5. The Salad
   6. Meanwhile
5. Serving
6. Additional Notes

Intro

This is the first in a series of 1-Hour Meals. Recipes, and most importantly, the process you should follow if you want to make whole meals – nutritious meals – well-balanced meals – in under an hour. During the hour, using these recipes and procedures, you will not only prepare the meal, but have most of the dishes washed, dried, and stored before sitting down to a well-prepared, delicious meal.

Preparation

The first few things to do when readying a 1-hour meal, is to get all the pans, cooking appliances, knives, cutting board, produce, meat, seasonings, pasta, and grains such as potatoes, or rice out on the stove and counter.

• Put oil and or butter in the pans that need oil or butter, and start them heating on the stove. I always use Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO).
• Fill the rice cooker in this case, with rice and water.
• Wash all the produce and set next to you cutting board.

Ingredients

• Chicken – 1 boneless skinned breast – medium to large – sliced lengthwise in tin strips then cross-cut into bite-sized pieces.
• Rice – Whatever your rice cooker suggests and your serving size.
• Cauliflower – 1 small head, cut up into bite-sized pieces.
• Poblano – 1 small poblano – diced
• Sweet Colored Pepper – 1 pepper total (mix if you like – red, yellow, or orange) – diced
• Onion – 1 small onion diced
• Broth – I use leftover broth from cooking a pork roast in my Instant Pot. If you don’t have that, use about ¼ cup of chicken broth.
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) to “taste”
• Butter – 1 to 1½ tbsp of butter.
• Spices – Use these to taste. I don’t measure spices much. I just season my dishes to taste.
  
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Garlic – granulated
  • Paprika
  • Turmeric
• Salad – to taste, i.e., use whatever ingredients you have and like.
  
  • I used baby spinach, strawberries, and zesty Italian dressing.

Appliances and pans

• I’m using a 10 ⅜” cast iron skillet for the chicken and veggie mix.
• Stainless steel Culinary Institute of America (CIA) skillet
• A Wolfgang Puck 1.5 cup Rice Cooker¹

Cooking

Always start with whatever takes the longest, or can stay warm while you cook other things.

Rice Cooker

Start with making the rice. This rice cooker is simple to use. Using the measuring cup that comes with (it’s different than regular measuring cups) measure 1.5 cups of rice and dump into the cooker. Add water and fill to the 1.5 cup mark in the cooker pan. Cover and press Cook. That’s it. It will come out perfect every time.

Cauliflower

After starting the rice cooker, remove the extra leaves from the cauliflower, wash, and cut into bite-sized pieces. Place them in the CIA skillet which should already be heated up, with oil. Season with salt and pepper.² Drizzle more oil over the top of the cauliflower and stir again, turning all the pieces till they are somewhat coated with the oil.

If you get in hurry or the pieces aren’t cooking evenly, cover the pan and cook for at few minutes on medium-low heat Don’t steam them long like this because they will turn to mush. Believe me – I know that from experience.

When the cauliflower is cooked to your taste, sprinkle with a bountiful amount of Turmeric over the cauliflower (if you like this. Totally optional, but this is the way I’ve cooked this dish for years). Toss the cauliflower thoroughly so all the pieces are covered evenly.

Chicken Breast

On a cutting board cut the breast along the length into thin slices. Keep them together as you slice them. Rotate them on the cutting board and cut cross-wise into bite-sized chunks. It is best to use a cutting board that is used just for meat. And a knife that is used just for meat.

Your pan should already be heated and the butter melted. Make sure you don’t scorch or burn the butter. Place the chicken in the cast iron skillet and mix into the butter. Next spice it up. I use a fe shakes of paprika, a couple of pinches of salt, some ground black pepper, and some granulated garlic. Stir often, turning the undercooked pieces so they all cook evenly. Cook for about 6- 10 minutes until you are sure they are cooked enough.

Place the cooked chicken aside in a bowl. Add oil to the cast iron skillet.

Veggies

While the chicken and cauliflower are cooking, clean the seeds from the jalapeño and pepper(s) and cut them into small pieces. Place them in the hot skillet. Now dice the onion and place in the skillet. Stir often so they cook evenly.

After the veggies are fairly cooked, put your broth in the mix and simmer. Let the broth reduce some.

The Salad

• Cut up the baby spinach into smaller pieces and place in a large stainless steel bowl.
• Cut up some strawberries and place in the bowl.
• Add dressing and toss.
• Serve in separate bowls.

Meanwhile

Cooking a 1-Hour Meal means never wasting a minute waiting for something to finish cooking. In between all this activity, you can find time to wash the dishes. Some will go in the dishwater, some you’ll wash by hand. Wash as many utensils as you can, the cutting boards (use very hot water washing the chicken cutting board and knife). Wash the stainless steel bowl after placing the salad in a bowl. Dry as many as you can and store them. This makes cleanup after the meal a breeze. And yes, you need to clean up everything after you eat.

Serving

Before you serve the meal, set the table. Or TV trays. Now it is time to put all those wonderful dishes together on a plate and enjoy.

Additional Notes

I hope you enjoy this meal as much as we do. Remember, to do a 1-Hour Meal, you have to prepare. Be Prepared. Think it over. Make sure that your frozen meat is thawed in the fridge overnight. Get that meat out of the fridge at least a half hour before starting your meal prep.

Cooking is a personal thing. We cook most of our meals and rarely go out to eat, except when we travel. Try this meal. Learn from it. And soon, after 2 or 3 1-Hour Meals, you’ll have the process down and can share some of your favorite meals, or links to them, in the comments below. Enjoy.

1. I don’t think this available any more. Here is a similar one ↩
2. The relationship between black pepper and turmeric is a classic example of biological teamwork. While turmeric contains curcumin, a compound with potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, the human body is remarkably poor at absorbing it on its own.
   Here is the breakdown of why black pepper is the essential “key” to unlocking those benefits:
   The Metabolism Problem
   Curcumin is lipophilic (fat-soluble) and is rapidly metabolized by the liver and excreted by the kidneys before it can reach the bloodstream. If you consume turmeric alone, most of the curcumin simply passes through your digestive tract without being utilized.
   The Role of Piperine
   Black pepper contains a bioactive alkaloid called piperine. Piperine interferes with the metabolic pathway that normally breaks down curcumin. Specifically, it inhibits a process called glucuronidation in the liver—the “tagging” process that tells the body to dispose of the curcumin.
   The 2,000% Boost
   Research has shown that combining even a small amount of black pepper with turmeric can increase the bioavailability (absorption) of curcumin by up to 2,000%. By slowing down the liver’s attempt to eliminate it, piperine allows the curcumin to remain in the blood long enough to provide systemic benefits. ↩