If you’re a single girl, you know how difficult it is to find pre-packaged meat in single-serving sizes. So, unless your local grocer has a butcher department offering individual chicken breasts, you are forced to buy the multi-packs and are left with two choices, 1) Cook all the chicken at once so the raw chicken doesn’t go bad, or 2) refrigerate or freeze the remaining chicken for future use (and then hope you remember to use them before they go bad).
I prefer option 1. I am far more likely to use chicken in my fridge that’s already cooked, than I am to remember to cook the raw chicken before it goes bad, or to defrost it if it’s frozen.
But that leaves me with the question of what to do with pre-cooked chicken breasts. There are only so many chicken Caesar salads a girl can eat, right?
Well, here’s my recipe for a one pot risotto dinner that includes my favorite risotto recipe (yum!), and uses that leftover chicken, and a few frozen veggies.
Start with my favorite risotto-for-one recipe. When the rice is almost, but not quite done to your liking, add in the pre-cooked chicken.
Then add veggies of your choice. Be sure you keep adding liquid, and tasting the rice, until it gets to the consistency of your liking. I like it smooth and creamy. Others like it a little more firm.
Whatever floats your risotto boat. Our differences make the world go round.
Once the risotto is done to your brand of perfection, and the veggies and chicken are heated through, take it off the heat. Add in the cream and parmesan cheese and stir until melted. This is the time to taste for any other spices needed. Salt? Pepper? Chives? Cayenne pepper? This is your masterpiece – own it!
All that’s left is to enjoy. Oh, and to wash the ONE dish you used to make this fabulous dinner. (Well, OK – maybe two if you count the pan that held the simmering liquid – but let’s not split hairs.) Now that’s my kind of clean-up.
Here’s the complete recipe. Enjoy!
Ingredients
Risotto-for-one recipe
1 pre-cooked chicken breast, chopped small
1/4 -1/2 cup mixed veggies of your choice
Instructions
1) Cook risotto per the risotto-for-one recipe until the rice is almost done, but not quite.
2) Add chicken and veggies.
3) Continue to add cooking liquid to rice and stirring and tasting until the rice is done to your liking, and the chicken and veggies are heated through.
4) Remove from heat and add cream and parmesan cheese.
5) Taste for salt and seasonings and add accordingly.
