Cajun Chicken with Rice and Red Beans Recipe

Not long ago, we featured a review of an innovative cookbook from the American Diabetes Association (ADA), The 12-Week Diabetes Cookbook: Your Super Simple Plan for Organizing, Budgeting, and Cooking Amazing Dinners, by Linda Gassenheimer.

As you’ll see in the recipe from the cookbook featured below, each recipe includes much more than a list of ingredients and some instructions. You’ll find information on exactly what constitutes a serving size, a description of the recipe, hints and tips for getting the most out of the ingredients, a countdown for timing it correctly, per-person costs, and a complete nutritional breakdown.

The 12-Week Diabetes Cookbook is available for purchase at the ADA’s online store.

CAJUN CHICKEN WITH RICE AND RED BEANS

SERVES: 4
SERVING SIZE: 5 ounces dark meat chicken, 1 tablespoon oil, 1/4 cup grapes, 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons rice, 1/4 cup beans
PREP TIME: 15 minutes
COOKING TIME: 25 minutes

Hot Cajun spices are contrasted with sweet grapes in this chicken dish. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are a flavorful alternative to chicken breasts. There are many Cajun spice blends to choose from. They normally include cayenne pepper, chili powder, onion powder, and garlic powder. I like the salt-free blends that are available in the supermarket.

HELPFUL HINTS:
• Cajun seasoning blends can be found in the spice section of the supermarket.
• A quick way to defrost frozen chopped green bell peppers is to place them in a colander and run hot water over them.

COUNTDOWN:
• Prepare ingredients for chicken and rice.
• Make rice.
• Make chicken.

CAJUN CHICKEN
6 teaspoons canola oil, divided
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
4 tablespoons water
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning*
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups mixed seedless red and green grapes, cut in half

1. Mix 4 teaspoons canola oil, balsamic vinegar, and water together and set aside.
2. Open chicken thighs flat. This can be done where the bone has been removed. Remove all visible fat. Sprinkle Cajun seasoning evenly over both sides of chicken.
3. Heat remaining 2 teaspoons canola oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and sauté 3 minutes. Turn and sauté 3 minutes. Watch chicken to make sure spices do not burn. Lower heat if needed. A meat thermometer inserted into chicken should read 175°F. Remove to a plate and sprinkle with salt.
4. Add the oil and vinegar mixture and the grapes to the skillet. Cook over medium heat, scraping up the brown bits in the skillet, for 2 minutes or until sauce is warmed through. Serve over chicken.

* Look for a salt-free or low-sodium Cajun seasoning blend. McCormick Perfect Pinch Cajun Seasoning or The Spice Hunter salt-free Cajun Seasoning blend fit this profile. It is important to make sure it’s salt-free or low-sodium.

RICE AND RED BEANS
Microwaveable brown rice (to make 2 1/2 cups cooked rice)
1 cup canned, low-sodium, small red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups frozen chopped green bell pepper, defrosted
Several drops hot pepper sauce
2 tablespoons canola oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. Microwave rice according to package instructions. Measure 2 1/2 cups rice and reserve any remaining rice for another time. Add rice to a bowl.
2. Rinse and drain beans and add to the bowl with green bell pepper. Add hot pepper sauce, canola oil, and salt and pepper. Toss well.

* This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, we may or may not receive a small commission which helps to support this site. Thank you!