Creamy Spicy Chicken with Seasoned Cauli Rice
This is a great way to add some interest to chicken thighs! I serve it with a creamy, smoky, spicy sauce which all gets mopped up by seasoned cauli rice! Ultimate indulgence!
Servings 4
Calories 818kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
For the cooked onion garlic mix
- 2 TB unsalted butter
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic peeled and crushed with a garlic press
- 1 tsp ground paprika plus extra pinch for the chicken
For the creamy, spicy chicken
- 4 large chicken thighs skin-on, bone-in
- 100 g smoked bacon lardons
- 100 g Kabanos (Cabanossi) chopped smaller
- 2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 200 g chicken stock
- 100 g baby spinach leaves
- 100 g double cream
- 65 g soured cream
To finish the seasoned cauliflower rice
- 1 TB unsalted butter
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 450 g cauliflower florets blitzed into ‘rice’
- handful fresh parsley finely chopped to garnish
- salt flakes, salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (fan-assisted) and line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Season all sides of the chicken with salt and pepper and a pinch of ground paprika. Place on the tray, skin side-up and bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make the cooked onion garlic mix which you will need in both the saucy chicken mix and the seasoned cauliflower rice. Melt the butter in a large non-stick pan and add the onions and garlic. Cook over medium heat until softened, approx. 8-9 minutes. Add the ground paprika cook for another 1-2 minutes. Transfer half this onion mixture to a second, large non-stick pan. Keep this second pan aside for now, we will come back to it later.
- Add the bacon lardons, chopped Cabanossi and cayenne pepper to the first pan containing half the onion mix and cook over medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Stir regularly to cook the bacon through, then add the chicken stock and baby spinach. Increase the heat to medium high, leaving the mixture to cook as the spinach wilts and the stock reduces. After about 4 minutes, pour in the double cream and soured cream and reduce the heat to medium low, leaving this mixture to reduce to a thick and saucy mixture.
- Meanwhile, make the seasoned cauliflower rice by turning your attention to the second pan with the second reserved batch of cooked onion garlic mix. Add the tablespoon of butter to the pan along with the cayenne pepper over medium high heat. Once the butter is foaming, tip in the cauliflower rice and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring regularly to sufficiently cook the raw ‘cauli’ flavour out. Season with salt and pepper. When the chicken is cooked, pour all the tray roasting juices into the cauliflower.
- Serve the cooked chicken and saucy bacon mixture with the seasoned cauliflower rice – and don’t forget to scatter freshly chopped parsley over the whole lot!
Notes
USEFUL TIPS:
- You will only need 450g cauliflower florets in this recipe to blitz into ‘rice’. This is about a medium head (florets only – as they yield the best flavour for ‘rice’). However, cauli keeps well in the fridge, so if you bought a large head and have any leftover, rest assured that it will be used up sometime in the next few days.
- Cauliflower off-cuts can easily be boiled or steamed, then smothered in melted butter or tossed in olive or coconut oil and roasted in a 180°C oven. It always makes a quick and easy keto vegetable side dish.
- If you do not use all your baby spinach leaves from the packet, spinach can be added to salads or stirred into stir-fries and stews. They wilt quickly, but they are a powerhouse of nutrients, so try use up any leaves that you can.
- Need to get a head start on your prep? Chopping onions, crushing garlic, and blitzing cauliflower into ‘rice’ can all be done well ahead of time and kept in the fridge until needed. Be sure to cover them though to avoid ‘smell-contamination’.
- If you can’t find smoked bacon lardons, use finely chopped smoked streaky bacon. However, fatty bacon rashers are tricky to chop smaller, even with a very sharpest knife. I like to place the rashers in the freezer for 20-25 minutes – it makes chopping a breeze!
- Kabanos is used in this recipe. It is also known as cabanossi and can be found where the chorizo rings or saucisson is found. If you cannot source it, use any spiced, thin cured sausage meat. Cured sausages are considered a ‘processed’ meat and are frowned upon by the ‘keto police’, but they are delicious and oh-so low in carbs… so let’s call this dirty’ keto!
My name is Monya Kilian Palmer. If you loved this recipe, please follow and tag me @mkilianpalmer on Instagram so we can all see your lovely creations!
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Nutrition
Calories: 818kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 53g | Fat: 62g