Healthy recipe: Peanut noodles with shredded chicken & vegetables

Yield: 6 servings, 1 1/2 cups each

Servings: 6

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

To Make Ahead: Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. To serve, stir in 2 tablespoons warm water per portion; serve cold or reheat in microwave.

Recipe Description:

If you can’t find a bagged vegetable medley for this easy noodle bowl, choose 12 ounces of cut vegetables from your market’s salad bar and create your own mix.

Recipe Ingredients:

1. 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2. 1/2 cup smooth natural peanut butter
3. 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
4. 2 teaspoons minced garlic
5. 1 1/2 teaspoons chile-garlic sauce, or to taste (see Ingredient note)
6. 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
7. 8 ounces whole-wheat spaghetti
8. 1 12-ounce bag fresh vegetable medley, such as carrots, broccoli, snow peas

Recipe Steps:

1. Put a large pot of water on to boil for cooking pasta.
2. Meanwhile, place chicken in a skillet or saucepan and add enough water to cover; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer gently until cooked through and no longer pink in the middle, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board. When cool enough to handle, shred into bite-size strips.
3. Whisk peanut butter, soy sauce, garlic, chile-garlic sauce and ginger in a large bowl.
4. Cook pasta in the boiling water until not quite tender, about 1 minute less than specified in the package directions. Add vegetables and cook until the pasta and vegetables are just tender, 1 minute more. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Rinse the pasta and vegetables with cool water to refresh. Stir the reserved cooking liquid into the peanut sauce; add the pasta, vegetables and chicken; toss well to coat. Serve warm or chilled.

Recipe Tips & Notes:

1. Ingredient Note: Chile-garlic sauce (or chili-garlic sauce, or paste) is a blend of ground chiles, garlic and vinegar and is commonly used to add heat and flavor to Asian soups, sauces and stir-fries. It can be found in the Asian section of large supermarkets and keeps up to 1 year in the refrigerator.

Recipe Nutrition:

Per serving: 371 calories; 13 g fat (2 g sat, 1 g mono); 42 mg cholesterol; 38 g carbohydrate; 0 g added sugars; 27 g protein; 8 g fiber; 369 mg sodium; 378 mg potassium

Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin A (76% daily value), Vitamin C (48% dv), Magnesium (21% dv), Iron (16% dv).

2 1/2 Carbohydrate Servings

Exchanges: 2 starch, 1 1/2 vegetable, 3 lean meat