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Today’s recipe is a simple THM:E dinner – a creamy chicken gravy (with a touch of curry powder) over an easy seasoned quinoa. This makes a filling supper that is budget-friendly yet packed with flavor. I love the tender texture of the quinoa soaked in creamy gravy, but you could use brown rice in place of the quinoa for an even cheaper meal. Just adjust the liquid as necessary and use the other ingredients to season 6 servings of brown rice.
Don’t feel like having gravy over quinoa? Feel free to use the quinoa as a side dish accompaniment to create another THM:E meal! Pair it with some sort of lean protein and an extra veggie (such as roasted carrots) and you’re good to go. The roasted carrots in the pictures in this post will be debuting in my next cookbook. There will be lots of side dish ideas.
The inspiration for this creamy chicken gravy recipe goes to my sister Katelyn. She made supper one night and I proceeded to try to recreate it the next time I cooked. It was that good! I think I came pretty close to her original creation, but I know that if she made it again, it would look totally different. 😛 She and I have the same problem – we never very rarely make the same recipe twice.
I’ve been posting more main dish recipes in the last few months – have you noticed? The biggest complaint I hear about Necessary Food is that it includes more sweet than savory recipes. I don’t necessarily think that’s a problem since most people have a harder time tweaking desserts than main dishes to be healthy (due to the alternative flours and sweeteners involved), but it would appear that main dishes are super important to you all! What do you think? What kind of balance between sweet and savory recipes would you like to see here on the blog? Let me know in the comments below!
As always, check out the Notes section of the recipes for extra info. I’ve included the Seasoned Quinoa recipe as a separate printable.
You may also enjoy:
- Starting THM
- my recipe index
- my recipes grouped by fuel type, allergy info, and theme
- all my no special ingredients recipes (These are recipes that can be made using ingredients found at a local grocery store. You may need to substitute sweeteners using a locally-sourced low-glycemic sweetener.)
- all my low-fat, THM:E recipes
Keep scrolling for the Seasoned Quinoa recipe….
- 2 lb. chicken breast
- 1 lg. onion, chopped
- Dime-sized bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1 tsp. each basil, curry powder, dill weed, garlic powder, parsley flakes
- ½ tsp. each salt, black pepper
- -
- 1½ c. fat-free Greek yogurt
- ¾ c. unsweetened almond milk
- ⅓ c. grated Parmesan cheese (the green can kind)
- Heat a large skillet or kettle until it's good and hot, then add the first set of ingredients. Reduce the heat to medium or medium-low and cover. (The lower the heat, the longer the cook time, but the more tender the chicken.) Stir occasionally. You can chop the chicken up a bit to speed up the cooking time.
- When the chicken is done, reduce the heat to low. Chop the chicken up fine with a pastry cutter, then add the Greek yogurt, almond milk, and cheese. Stir, then simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Taste and add more salt if necessary.
- Serve over Seasoned Quinoa for a THM:E meal or some sort of nonstarchy veggie (steamed broccoli or spaghetti squash) for a THM:FP meal.
- 3 c. water
- 1½ c. dry quinoa
- 2 springs fresh cilantro, chopped
- 2 tsp. dried minced onion
- 2 tsp. chicken bouillon*
- Salt and pepper, if needed
- Rinse and drain the quinoa to remove any bitter coating.
- Bring all the ingredients to a boil, then simmer (covered) for 15 minutes. Turn the heat off and leave the pan on the burner for 5 more minutes. Fluff the quinoa with a fork and serve.
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May I ask what brand/mix of chicken bouillon you use? Many contain msg and I’m curious as to what type you use. Thank you!
I like Better than Bouillon brand. I find it at Walmart. It’s a paste, not a powder.
Oh my, I made this for supper tonight. It is DELICIOUS!! My husband and I both loved this! Will definitely be making this again!
This is delicious! I will definitely be making it again!
Hello, when cooking the chicken with the spices do you use a small amount of butter or oil so the chicken doesn’t not stick to the pan?
No I don’t, and I don’t usually have issues. 🙂 Adding the sauce ingredients at the end tends to help clean the pan. There’s already a bit of fat from the low fat Greek yogurt or sour cream + the Parmesan cheese, and since I wanted to keep this usable in an E or FP setting I didn’t want to add any more. You could spritz the pan with some cooking spray before adding the chicken, if you like.
Is there a way to Cook the chicken gravy I’m a slow cooker? How would you do that?
I’d be a little hesitant to do that because of the dairy…I’m afraid it would curdle if it got too hot.
Thanks so much for this recipe! I made it last night, and it was tops. Definitely going in my rotation. My only problem was that the sauce broke/curdled after adding the yogurt. I think that next time I’ll add the yogurt after I take it off the heat. I also added some glucomannan to thicken. Thank you!!! Yum!
I definitely am all for main dish recipes! I also love that your main dish recipes aren’t too complicated. While I absolutely adore all of the recipes from the Trim Healthy Mama cookbook, some of them are a bit daunting in terms of time needed to prep them. This recipe (the chicken gravy) and your other new recipe that I just made (the rice and beans recipe) were simple and easy to prepare, and I SO appreciate that as a busy homeschool mama!
Thanks again for this recipe!
I’m so glad you and your family are enjoying the recipes, Diana! Easy and accessible is what I’m going for, so that’s great to hear. As far as the sauce breaking, it does sound like it got too hot, so your idea of adding it after taking it off the heat should be great.
Had this over brown rice tonight…delicious! Thanks for all the awesome recipes!
any subs for the cilantro?
Feel free to use any of your own favorite herbs. 🙂
Briana, I absolutely hate cilantro too. The funny thing is that I love dried coriander. I know that they come from a different part of the plant and have a different flavor profile. Do you think that flavor would go with this, or should I just leave it out all together?
Hmm…that would definitely be an interesting addition! If you decide to use some, I would start with a very small amount as coriander can be pretty strong, in my experience. 🙂
Yes more main dishes and sides. I need it all. I am new at this and need all the help I can get. Thanks for all your help and delicious recipes. Love your cookbook.
hey…i have been reading your blog for several months now…and as a young cook who can barely come up with unhealthy main dishes to make, i definitely love healthy main dish recipes. Keep them coming! 😉
I am confused about the “E” designation on this recipe with the sour cream. Is it still an E with all that sour cream, or did I misunderstand something? Sounds deliciously creamy for an “E”
As long as it’s low-fat as stated in the recipe, it’s just fine for an E. 🙂
I adore all the sweet recipes in the cookbook! I love ’em! ?
So excited to see a quinoa recipe on your blog! A favorite menu of our family is: grilled deer loin, oven sweet potato fries, and quinoa w/black beans, green chilies, cumin, etc.
I am looking forward to trying the chicken gravy.
And I also vote for more main dishes 🙂
This was an excellent meal. At first I was unsure of the spice combinations but you clearly know why you’re doing because this is going in my rotation. Thanks!