Summer is a time for simple but bold, fresh flavors. I am back in the kitchen, and things have never been better. There were weeks of many salad meals, take out, and dinners out, and I am truly happy to be excited about developing new recipes again.
This weekend I made a healthy, spicy dish that had Greek, Indian, and Middle Eastern influences.
It all started with some fresh mint from my deck. I love being able to take a few steps and to come back inside with fresh ingredients.
First I made a cool yogurt salad with mint, garlic, thin slices of red onion, English cucumber, and tomato. Roughly, I used a cup of 2% Greek yogurt, a small handful of mint, 5 crushed and minced garlic cloves, 1 cup of sliced cucumber, maybe 1/4 cup sliced red onion, and 1 medium tomato, seeded and chopped. I stirred everything together, then covered it and let it chill for about an hour.
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Once the yogurt sauce was chilling, I coated free range organic chicken tenders with sriracha and a bit more Greek yogurt and set those in the refrigerator to chill as well.
The starring ingredient in this dish was a new product that I found at Trader Joe’s, Masala Tandoori Naan. It is a little sweet, spicy, soft, and so good. I am not a bread person, but this bread is positively addictive. I kept stealing bites as I was cooking 😉
After the chicken had been in the marinade for about an hour, I pan sautéed them in the yogurt and sriracha mix, creating incredibly tender and flavorful meat.
I chopped the chicken and place it on top of the naan then dressed it with the yogurt and veggie sauce/salad.
Served with kale and red beets massaged with olive oil and lemon juice. Simple, healthy, delicious.
Even though it was quick and barely heated up the kitchen on a VERY hot and humid day, it felt like a proper meal because of how well all of the flavors worked and how balanced it was nutritionally.
I love to create recipes based on various ethnic foods. Right now I am all about Indian spices. At other times, I am inspired by Japanese sushi or Thai curries.
If you had to pick a favorite ethnic food, what would it be?
I am looking for a few guest bloggers to submit posts for the coming weeks. Food, wine, travel, and fitness posts are all welcome. Please email me at traveleatlove (@) gmail.com.
