Today another oriental kind of chicken that we recently eat quite often. It’s chicken thighs with shiitake mushrooms and sesame. I really like the taste of soya sauce, it always gives unmistakable aroma to meat and veggies. I used shiitake mushrooms to make this meal, but if you don’t have these in your fridge, white or chestnut mushrooms will work as well.

If you’d like to make keto version of this chicken use gluten free soya sauce instead of regular one. It’s slightly more expensive, but worth trying if you like the taste.

It’s very easy to make and will take you not more than 30 minutes. You can serve it with rice or noodles or some salad. It has a strong soya sauce aroma and sesame flavour, and smells amazing.

I also prefer chicken thighs than chicken breasts. In my opinion they taste much better and are less dry. Dark meat, which we find in the legs, thighs and lower legs, is rich in myoglobin – a protein responsible for the storage of oxygen in the muscles, necessary during their work. The more myoglobin in the muscles, the darker the meat and the more nutritious it becomes. Because chickens are non-volatile and move their legs, their meat in these areas is much darker than in other parts of the body. Dark meat also contains more fat. According to this article dark chicken meat has three main advantages:

1. Myoglobin contained in muscle cells and is rich in iron. So, dark meat is the best source of iron and minerals.
2. Dark meat is rich in zinc, selenium, riboflavin, thiamine, vitamins B6 and B12.
3. Reduces the risk of heart and blood vessel diseases. Taurine, a substance contained in dark meat, is necessary for the normal functioning of the heart.

Both white and dark chicken meat is good source of protein and minerals. More naturally bred chickens, better quality meat. Information on piping poultry with antibiotics and other chemicals, aiming to increase their mass is considered as “conspiracy theories”. However, in today’s world so many disturbing things are happening, that this information should be considered as more than probable. And it’s very sad, that as consumers, we no longer cannot trust to most of the food producers, that their first and main value is our health. I’m very curious what do you think about that? Would be happy to read your thoughts in the comments below.

oriental chicken with shiitake mushrooms & sesame

INGREDIENTS:

• 500g chicken thighs
• 2 medium onions
• 115g shiitake mushrooms
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 3 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• about 3 tbsp dark soya sauce (for keto use gluten free one)
• small pinch of natural rock salt
• pinch of black coarse pepper

DIRECTIONS

Cut chicken is stripes, place in a bowl and add soya sauce. Stir thoroughly to cover all the chicken stripes in soya sauce. Leave in the fridge for about 20 minutes.

Cut onions lengthwise in thick slices. Rinse shiitake mushrooms under cold running water and leave on the colander to dry slightly.

Heat large skillet or wok adding 1 tbsp of coconut oil. Toss the chicken on the hot pan, and fry on quite high heat stirring from time to time. When chicken is ready add sliced onions and shiitake mushrooms. Slightly lower the heat, add small pinch of salt and pepper. Fry stirring occasionally until onion gets soften. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. At the end add sesame oil and more soya sauce if needed.

Depending of the brand you use, soya sauce will be more or less salty and strong, so might need adjust the amount. It’s easier to add more if it’s not salty enough, than add too much at the beginning.

Serve with addition of your choice: rice, noodles or salad.

Enjoy!