Basic Chicken Rice and Quinoa

I've talked about this a lot before, but I can't help but get excited about quinoa as an amazing option for meals and cooking! On a recent trip to Woolworths, while browsing for rice, I discovered a fantastic product that fits perfectly with my diabetes-friendly meal planning: brown rice and quinoa! Both are fantastic choices for anyone mindful of diabetes and healthy eating.

I usually whip up a 'dirty rice' or 'dirty quinoa' for the family using mince (check out my previous blog posts for more on that), but one night, all we had in the freezer was chicken. So, I got creative and crafted a meal for the family that turned out to be an absolute hit—both in flavor and for maintaining healthy blood glucose levels! I'm absolutely thrilled to have discovered this product and concocted this meal—it checks every box I advocate for!!!

Ingredients

1 x cup Brown Rice and Quinoa mixture

500 g chicken breast

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup oil

salt and pepper (to taste)

Method

1. Place rice and quinoa into a pot of boiling water and leave for 30 minutes. 20 minutes may be enough but the extra time will just make it softer and easier to eat!

2. Place chicken in oven proof dish. Add oil , soy sauce and salt and pepper. Cover and chill in fridge. The first time I did this I only left it was half and hour and it was totally fine :) Marinading for longer is also an option

3. Place chicken dish in oven at 180 degrees Celsius and bake for 20 minutes

4. Once rice / quinoa mixture is ready - drain and place onto plate ( as much as desired). For someone with diabetes you may have a little less rice / quinoa and a little more chicken? Obviously is always up to the individual!

5. Place chicken on top

6. Pour soy sauce marinade over chicken and rice/quinoa.

7. Serve up with whatever veggies and other yummy things you may like!

Conclusion

Isn't it fantastic? It's so incredibly simple, easy, tasty, and friendly to blood glucose levels! As always, adding vegetables and other extras to the meal is a must to avoid overeating the main dish. Vegetables, no matter how you cook them, are a fantastic addition. I've discovered that they can be covered with the marinade to enhance the flavor without piling on calorie-laden condiments. On one occasion, we threw in some 2-minute noodles (a bit cheeky, I know, but one of our four kids would only eat the noodles, so that's how it went). To our delight, the marinade made the noodles even more delicious—especially for our 6-year-old. Pleasing children while promoting healthy eating is a daily adventure, so any tips and tricks are invaluable, in my experience!

Feast your eyes on this real-life screenshot! Our glucose levels were already throwing a party before dinner even started. But hold onto your hats, because overnight, those sugar levels were as smooth as a jazz saxophonist. We woke up to levels that were low but still in the safe zone, all set for the breakfast extravaganza of our dreams!

Just imagine this: the day after our delightful meal, we found ourselves on an exciting adventure aboard the Steamranger choo choo train for our son's 3rd birthday! We faced some lows, but no worries—we were prepared with snacks and always have a sugary treat on hand these days. Even five years after the diagnosis, managing diabetes still requires some extra thought, adding to the 180 additional decisions a person with Type 1 diabetes makes daily! A 2014 Stanford University study highlighted this incredible fact, and I remember being fascinated by this during my own studies. The research is crystal clear. It’s a challenging journey, but we're all in to make life easier, especially when it comes to meals and foods! https://nowpatient.com/blog/what-is-a-diabetes-decision

While some of the photos I share might not win any beauty contests, they are 100% 'for real life,' as our daughter would put it! In a world where fakeness is as common as cat videos, dealing with diabetes is the real deal we have to tackle. I often meet patients who act like it's not there, only to get a not-so-fun surprise later. It's super important to know what's going into our bodies and the impact it has. Let's face it, none of us are perfect, but if we can make tiny changes each day, that's a win!