I’ve loved curry since my Uni days, in Manchester we were spoilt; Birmingham may have had the table naan but we had the curry mile jam packed with the best curry houses in the country. When I was in India I fell in love with the food all the more, honestly I could have just lived on dhal and rice alone!

Our 101 Plans we have some great curry recipes, because let’s face it none of us are ever giving up curry, but with an average take away curry packing in a whopping 2200 calories (a day’s worth of calories) we wanted to give you something that you can’t eat as an ‘every day’ food than an occasional treat. The even better news is that if you can grate an onion you can make this recipe.

This recipe is a bit of a twist on our view of a traditional curry, we love pilau rice as much as the next person but we want to help you get more ‘smart’ carbs in to your diet…that means more whole grains and more veggies. So, drum roll please (you’ll have to use your imagination for that…we’ve not mastered technology just yet) the curried chicken bowls are brown rice and quinoa, no, really they are, and trust me this food is seriously good!! I have to admit I am not a massive fan of brown rice – I know how can I even say that, I’m supposed to be the one telling you white rice is a sin and never let it pass your lips, but 99% of the time give me white basmati rice, but in this recipe the impossible has been achieved and brown rice has been elevate to queen of rice.

We like to make things easy so the recipe has pre-cooked quinoa and brown rice, but if you prefer to cook your own don’t let us stop you! And, if you are like I was and can’t quite believe that there is a scenario where brown rice doesn’t taste like dried carpet, switch it out for your white basmati or wild rice.

I know we are all in a rush but resist all temptation not to marinade, it does make a difference and the easiest way to do it is prep the marinade and chuck the chicken the night before you’re going to cook it. To make the marinade is about 3 minutes of effort, grade an onion in a bowl, throw in some yoghurt and spices, add the chicken, stir cover and pop it in the fridge.

Serves: 4

Time: 30 minutes + marinating time (at least 2 hrs)

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Ingredients

190g low-fat plan yoghurt (total Greek yoghurt works well)

50g grated onion

2 table spoons mild curry powder

1½ tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon olive oil

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional and if you like it hotter add a bit more)

650g chicken breast, chopped in to 2cm pieced (or buy it ready chopped)

250g cooked brown rice

250g cooked quinoa

5g fresh coriander, chopped

25g spring onions, thinly sliced

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Instructions

1. Put the yoghurt, curry powder, lemon juice, half the oil, salt and cayenne in to a medium sized bowl and mix together.

2. Add the chicken and toss to coat it evenly, cover and marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours and ideally overnight.

3. Once marinated, preheat your oven to 200°C (180°C for fan ovens)

4. Place the chicken on a baking sheet in a single layer. Roast in the oven for 15-18 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Take care not to overcook as the chicken will become dry.

5. When the chicken is cooked take it out of the oven and cover to keep it warm while you heat the rice and quinoa.

6. To serve add the quinoa and rice to bowls and top with the chicken, finishing off by sprinkling with coriander and spring onions.

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Macronutrients

Calories: 274

Protein: 24g

Carbohydrates: 28g

Fibre: 4g

Fats: 7g

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