Cilantro Lime Chicken and Broccoli // The One Where Crouton Says Goodbye to 2012

Welcome to 2013! I anticipated my first post of the new calendar year to be much more photo-heavy, but someone – ahem, my dear husband – has taken the camera’s memory card reader to work and subsequently left it there … for nearly a week now! Therefore, instead of macaroni and cheese or truffle oil pasta recipes, today you instead receive a recipe for cilantro chicken and broccoli, a not-photographed dinner we tried last week.

But let’s check in with Crouton first, shall we? The little princess received a new calming collar in her Christmas stocking – an invention that actually seems to work on her – so sneak attacks and volatile moods are currently being suppressed. On Dec. 31^st, when I was packing to visit friends in Delaware for New Year’s Eve, she decided to take a little nap – right on the clothes I was packing to wear that night. I know this is a phenomenon not exclusive to Crouton. Why do cats, when given the option of sleeping on an entire king-sized bed or any other myriad places within the house, always have to choose the clothes, book, keyboard, etc., that you’re using? Those sequins could NOT be comfortable!

Back to the food! The original recipe was written for shrimp; however, the seafood guy at Wegman’s was more concerned with flirting with a lady in very high heels than helping me purchase a pound of large, raw shrimp. Therefore, this was turned into a chicken recipe – chicken thighs were on sale, but it could easily be replaced with boneless, skinless chicken breasts.  As a bonus – this meal is easy and fast to put together, but still very flavorful.

Cilantro Lime Chicken and Broccoli
Serves 4

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup white wine or chicken broth
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
¼ cup cilantro, chopped
Juice of one lime
4 broccoli crowns, chopped into small pieces
Salt and pepper, to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chopped-up chicken breasts and let cook for approximately seven minutes, or until the bottom had a nice golden-brown color. This color is very important for flavor! Using tongs, flip the chicken to brown the other side. Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.

Add the garlic to the pan, and then deglaze the pan with the white wine or chicken broth, using a spatula to scrape up any leftover brown bits from the chicken. Add the broccoli and cover the pan, allowing the veggies to steam for about five minutes.