Recipe: Jay’s CBV (Chicken Bacon Vegetables)

Ingredients

2 lbs chicken breast
4-5 strips thick cut bacon
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 cup diced onions (~1 large onion)
2 cup diced mushrooms
2 cup diced bell peppers (~2 whole bell peppers)
2 cup diced broccoli
2 tbsp minced garlic or equivalent
2 tbsp cumin
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp oregano
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Pan-fry the bacon on medium-high heat
2. Set the bacon aside and transfer the pan fat to a medium-large pot
3. In that same baconed, de-fatted pan, still on medium-high heat, add some of your olive oil
4. When the oil has heated up, add the chicken to get a nice sear, then set chicken aside
5. Set the the bacon-enfattened pot on medium-high, add minced garlic to pan and sauté for about 30 seconds
6. Add onions and sauté until they start to turn translucent
7. Add the rest of the vegetables and sauté with lid on for about 5 minutes
8. While the vegetables sauté, cut the seared chicken into cubes or chunks or however you prefer
9. Turn pot heat down to low
10. Add the rest of the ingredients and spices, plus the chicken, and mix thoroughly
11. Return pan to heat and cover
12. Chop up bacon and add to pan at some point, mixing thoroughly
13. Let simmer for 10-12 minutes, mixing every so often>/li>
14. Let stand for a few minutes after removing from heat, uncovered so sauce thickens, before serving

Useless Information and a Photo

I wanted another recipe that was better-tasting than the chicken and broccoli one I had (link below), but more vegetable-y than the paleo-keto version (link also below). I also wanted one with more—gasp!—carbs, since low-glycemic carbs are good for keeping energy levels higher and steadier throughout the day. I’m not a huge proponent of getting a “variety” of foods in your diet, except if it helps to make a certain diet more sustainable in the long run. Chicken and rice and broccoli will get boring and eventually somewhat repulsive after a while, when that can be easily avoided by adding different spices and comparable vegetables.

I want do another version of this recipe with eggs, removing the bacon, because egg yolks have some of the best nutrition-dense profiles in a single food.

I noticed, too, that this recipe freezes really well over the long term. Some meals can get a weird grainy texture if they defrost after sitting in the freezer for a while. This didn’t have that problem for me.

Recipe: Chicken and Broccoli
Recipe: Jay’s Paleo-Keto Chicken