Student Suppers: Mexican-style Chicken & Pepper Stir Fry

This post was created in partnership with Uncle Bens. Surprisingly, the various restaurants and cafeterias around the Parliamentary Estate where I used to work as a political researcher have provided me with so many delicious dishes when I’ve tried to reproduce what I had for lunch again for dinner in my own kitchen. A couple of summers ago a starter in the main restaurant inspired my Sardine and Pea Shoot Bruschetta, and my favourite lunch go-to of Jerk Pork and Jerk Chicken has me working hard to perfect my recipe. However, today we’re going down memory lane with a lunch I first had at Bellamy’s, the ‘healthy option’ cafeteria located a few floors down in my old building at 1 Parliament Street: a delicious, made-to-order Mexican-style stir fry of chicken, peppers and red onions in a chipotle infused tomato sauce, served with loads of warm, fluffy basmati rice and a generous sprinkling of fresh coriander. So quick, so simple, and so delicious.

While neither of us work there any longer, Parliament (specifically a sunny evening on the House of Commons terrace, overlooking Big Ben and the River Thames) is where my boyfriend and I met, so I decided to go down a nostalgic route for us when Uncle Bens challenged me to put together a dish that was all about sharing memories through food. The idea behind their latest campaign is that dinner brings us closer together sharing memories around the dinner table, and you simply must check out Benjamin Zephaniah’s great poem about what makes ‘British Food’ that he has written and performed for the campaign.

I find when I get people together to eat, be it just my immediate family or when I’ve invited friends over I try to make things as simple as possible. This is why I keep lots of pouch rice on hand like the Uncle Bens basmati pouches I’ve served here as they’re ready in minutes. Equally, don’t get to stressed by shopping for an easy dish like this; I used chicken breasts, and red and orange peppers because that is how I remember the dish; any mix of red, yellow and orange pepper, and skinless boneless chicken thighs would also work.

The measurements below make two big, or three small portions (there are leftovers from my plateful, but J polished all of his off!) It is easy to half this recipe (use one of those mini tins of tomatoes) or double it up, though you’ll probably need to cook the stir fry in batches, or use a big saucepan instead. Literally the only way you can go wrong here is if you overcook the chicken; so keep a eye on that, and all will be fine!

Mexican-style Chicken & Pepper Stir Fry

• Author: Rachel Phipps
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 10 minutes
• Total Time: 20 minutes
• Yield: Serves 2

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Description

A quick and easy stir-fry of chicken, onions, tomato and peppers flavoured with chipotle paste which is delicious over rice with lots of fresh coriander.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 2 Large Chicken Breasts, cubed 
• 2 tbsp Chipotle Paste 
• 1 Red Pepper, cut into chunks 
• 1 Yellow Pepper, cut into chunks 
• 1 Red Onion, cut into chunks 
• 1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes 
• 2 tbsp water 
• 2 x Pouches Uncle Ben’s Basmati Ready To Eat Rice 
• Small Handful Fresh Coriander, chopped

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Instructions

1. Combine the chicken and the chipotle paste in a small bowl and set aside to marinate while you prepare the peppers and red onion.
2. Heat a wok or a very large frying pan over a medium high heat and add the veggies. Stir fry until they’ve started to soften and caramelise around the edges.
3. Add the chicken and stir fry until it has almost cooked through, adding the water to the pan when it seems a little fry.
4. Add the tinned tomatoes, and reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes, until the chicken is completely cooked through.
5. While the chicken is simmering, heat up the rice.
6. Serve the stir fry over rice with a generous amount of fresh coriander sprinkled on top!

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