5-Spice Chicken in a Bowl - Healthy Food Tip and Recipe

healthy food tip and recipe

Today's Recipe If you don't know what to serve for dinner tonight ...
The unique use of spices in the broth combined with the chicken gives you a great combination of flavors in this easy-to-prepare addition to your Healthiest Way of Eating. Not only does it taste great you will also receive 155% of the daily value (DV) for health-promoting vitamin K, 68% DV for protein, and 67% DV for niacin. Enjoy!
5-Spice Chicken in a Bowl
Prep and Cook Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (6 oz each), cut in 2-inch pieces
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 inch sliced fresh ginger, sliced (or 1/2 tsp dried ginger)
• 6 whole cloves
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 5 star anise
• 1/2 tsp dried fennel seeds
• 1 medium-sized onion, chopped in big pieces
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped in big pieces
• 6 whole medium dried shiitake mushrooms
• 1 lb green beans, ends cut off
• 1/2 cup minced scallions

Directions:

1. Chop onion and garlic and let sit for 5 minutes to bring out their hidden health-promoting benefits.
2. Healthy Sauté onion in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add garlic and continue to saut� for another minute. Add chicken broth, ginger, cloves, cinnamon stick, star anise, fennel seeds, and shiitake mushrooms. Turn heat to medium-high and simmer for 15 minutes.
3. While broth is simmering, cut ends off beans and cut into 1-inch pieces.
4. Strain broth mixture (saving shiitake mushrooms) and put liquid back into pan. Bring to a boil and simmer on high heat with chicken pieces and green beans. You may need to skim the surface a little while chicken pieces are cooking. Slice shiitake mushrooms and add to chicken and broth. Add scallion as well as salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 4 Serve with brown rice. For optimum flavor and nutrition serve with:

• Napa Cabbage Salad

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In-Depth Nutritional Profile for 5-Spice Chicken in a Bowl
Healthy Food Tip

What is the difference between different types of peppers?

All peppers, including green chili peppers, belong to the Capsicum genus of foods, and this food group has been extensively studied with respect to health. We include three of the most widely available and commonly consumed Capsicum peppers on our website and The World's Healthiest Foods book: bell peppers, cayenne peppers, and chili peppers. But there are many other peppers with similar properties, including tabasco peppers, jalapeno peppers, and hot cherry peppers, as well as other sweet peppers in addition to bell peppers.
Although it might seem like the biggest differences in peppers would be related to their size or shape, peppers can be nutritionally different for a wide variety of reasons. For example, if the growing season for a pepper has been cool and rainy, the pepper can accumulate more beta-carotene but less red-colored xanthophyll pigments. This trade-off isn't bad or good; it just gives you a different combination of healthy nutrients. Most peppers will also appear green when they are not fully ripened because their high chlorophyll content (making them look green to the eye) will overshadow their carotenoid content (which will make them look orange or yellow). If allowed to ripen more fully, these same green peppers will change in color to show more of their yellow-red carotenoid pigments. You'll get wonderful benefits from all of the peppers mentioned above, just different nutrient combinations.
If you are looking for particular nutrient benefits, you can use the following color-nutrient combinations as a general rule of thumb. Yellow peppers typically contain more of the lutein and zeaxanthin carotenoids. Red peppers usually have more lycopene and astaxanthin, two other important carotenoids. Orange peppers tend to offer more alpha-, beta-, and gamma-carotene, while purple peppers will usually provide you with more anthocyanin flavonoids. Since all of these nutrients can make important contributions to your health, I recommend a variety of peppers for the widest possible health support.
There is one group of individuals who may want to decide about peppers a little differently. The family of foods to which all Capsicum peppers belong is the nightshade family (Solanaceae). Nightshades also include tomatoes, eggplant, and potatoes. Nightshades contain substances called alkaloids that can be problematic in the diets of some individuals. In general, those with health problems involving their joints, including osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and gout may be more sensitive to the effects of nightshade alkaloids and may need to reduce or eliminate these foods in their diet. All peppers would be included in this list of nightshade foods.