If you’re anything like me, you tend to eat the same things over and over each week. It’s as if you are on autopilot. I find myself consistently using my trusty jar of pesto, and raw carrots seem to be my go-to vegetable. The protein I was consuming was a predictable carousel of chicken and tuna. This bugged me so much that I finally decided to get some expert help!
I was genuinely interested in cooking simple, tasty, and healthy meals, but my imagination was letting me down. It just seemed easier to keep going the way I was and eating the same thing each week, but I knew that it just wasn’t sustainable. Eventually I believed my healthy eating would go off track, as I searched for anything to add a different flavour to my food. This, more often than not, would involve either high salt or high sugar choices.
During a visit over Christmas, I got chatting to my fellow red bearded cousin about what was going on with my food and fitness. I had the fitness side motoring along nicely but my food was just barely chugging on by! He knew my dilemma and was eager to help me. He talked with such enthusiasm and love for cooking that I felt we had to join forces. This was when the Properly Built Recipe Series with Kevin Burke was born.
Kevin Burke is the Sous Chef of the The Ninth restaurant in London. Jun Tanaka’s The Ninth is a Michelin Star restaurant that offers simple but refined French Mediterranean style dishes. This Michelin award winning chef has created a mini series of healthy and delicious recipes to beat our culinary boredom, as we drive forward into 2017.
Not only do we have similar beards, we were also in total agreement that each dish should have natural ingredients, be low in fat, and high in all the good stuff like vitamins, minerals, protein, and fibre.
For week one, we are serving up Grilled Chicken, Lemongrass Bulgur Wheat and Pear! I’ve seen many a chicken and pear, but what on earth is bulgur wheat?
Well according to the experts, bulgur wheat is a dried, cracked wheat that is most common in middle eastern and Indian cuisine. It is typically made from durum wheat, which is what pasta is made from, and can be found in the rice and pasta aisle in most supermarkets.
The lemongrass is used to give a nice fresh flavor to the bulgur wheat, and we’ll just have to wait and find out what happens to the pear!
These exclusive recipes tick all the boxes. They are going to increase your energy with good clean fuel, while giving your taste buds a real treat. All ingredients can be found at your local supermarket, and there are very few steps to go through. Take it away Chef Kevin!
Grilled Chicken, Lemongrass Bulgur Wheat & Pear
Preparation time: 25 mins
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
2 Chicken Breasts
½ Cup Bulgur Wheat
1 Tablespoon of Grated Ginger
Large Handful Chopped Parsley
5 Spring Onions Sliced
1 Grated Pear (The whole thing, core and all)
1 Lemon
1 Teaspoon Smoked Paprika
Handful of Almonds or Pine nuts
1 Cup Water
1 Chicken Stock
1 Lemongrass Stick
Method:
- Cut the chicken into chunks, combine with the paprika, 1 teaspoon of oil & a touch of salt & pepper. Give them a good mix.
- Crush the lemongrass with the back of a knife. Place in a microwave container with a fitted lid, along with the Bulgur Wheat, Ginger, Stock Cube & Water. Close the container tight and cook for 5 mins, remove and stir, then give it another 5 mins until light and fluffy.
- While the Bulgur Wheat is cooking, grill your chicken for 5 to 10mins, depending on size. No need to turn them, Cook on one side until you get a really nice charr!!
- Now your Bulgar should be fragrant and delicious. Simply mix in your sliced Spring Onion, Pine Nuts/Almonds, Parsley & Grated Pear. Finish with a generous squeeze of lemon juice.
Variations:
- The Bulgur Wheat can be cooked with a vegetable stock cube for a vegetarian option.
Top Tip:
Serve with natural yogurt & a wedge of lemon, if you are feeling luxurious!
So there it is! Recipe number one in the “Recipes to Die For” series. Your one challenge now is to take this list of ingredients, buy them, and return home to surprise all the members of your family with your new culinary expertise!
We are starting off slowly with just one new recipe, but there will be two more brand new recipes out next week. Let’s get used to trying new ingredients, new flavours, and interesting new ways of cooking.
Not only will you be becoming more skilled in the kitchen, this food will give you the right energy to keep you feeling good, regulate your blood sugar levels, and allow you to be in the best possible shape to get your workouts done. One small change that creates a big ripple effect.
Now, where’s my knife and fork…