First Recipe Post – Balsamic Braised Chicken!

Yes the time has finally come! As promised we are going to show you how to make Balsamic Braised Chicken over Couscous.

“Whoa, D&E this sounds hard to make…and a little too fancy for college students.”  Trust us, it’s neither hard nor fancy. But first, we do need to go over some technique regarding the use of knives. We found the following video perfect for any beginner and highly suggest watching it before moving on.

If you need to watch this video again in the future, we’ve added it to our “Resources” page under videos. Onto the recipe:

Balsamic Braised Chicken over Couscous

This recipe will impress friends and family but only takes minimal effort and time.  It is flavorful AND healthy.  It also keeps great as leftovers, so go ahead and make all three servings (just store the chicken and couscous in separate containers)!

• Servings – 3
• Prep time – 5 minutes
• Cook time – 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 3 boneless chicken breast halves (they’re normally sold as halves)
• Salt
• Pepper
• 2 cloves of minced garlic (watch this quick tutorial first)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Small onion
• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
• ½ teaspoon dried basil
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary (if the leaves are too big, break them up with your fingers before adding or else you might get a big bite of just rosemary later)
• Couscous

Protocol:

1.  Cut onion crosswise into long slices.

2.  Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper (just a small sprinkle on each side).

3.  Heat about a tablespoon of the olive oil over medium heat in a large, high walled skillet. This should take a minute or two.

4.  Add chicken to skillet. Add onions around chicken. Flip chicken over after 3 minutes (or until lightly browned).

5.  After another 3 minutes, add canned tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, chopped garlic, and dried herbs.  Make sure everything is incorporated together. Note:  If you don’t know if you like  balsamic vinegar (we use it all the time!), you can substitute half with chicken broth or stock. 1/4 cup is 4 tablespoons, so use 2 tablespoons broth and 2 tablespoons vinegar. Also, if you use the broth, buy it in one of the resealable boxes instead of a can. They’re a little more expensive, but will last up to two weeks in the fridge.

6.  Reduce heat to medium-low, cover with lid, and simmer for 5 minutes.

7.  Start water or broth for couscous. Follow the directions on the container.

8.  After 5 minutes, flip over chicken and simmer for another 5 minutes.

9.  Serve over couscous and enjoy!

For a little added bonus – the total cost per serving is just under $3, and this is one of our more expensive meals! Make sure to tell us how your experience went and if you have any other tips or suggestions in the comment section below.

-D&E