Healthy Changes, Day 10: Stir-Fried Chicken

Day 10 Overview:
Weight:  207 lbs (-10 total!)
Exercise:  Walk & Yoga
Recipe:  Stir-Fried Chicken with Red Cabbage and Plums (really good - try it!)

We had some wine with dinner last night and I wasn't sure I'd be down any extra weight because of it, but I lost another 0.9 pounds anyway, which makes it an even 10 today! Yay!  That seems to be the one thing that hasn't stuck on this program.  We've had wine with dinner a few times in the past ten days, but my goal for the remainder of the 21 days is to not have any alcohol at all.  The caffeine hasn't really been an issue since the shakes are packed with energy foods and I'm allowed to have tea.  I have to be careful what tea I have after about 2pm or I'm up late with insomnia.  The other goal adjustment is that I want to commit to more than just exercising every day (which I've done, even with all the rain!) and to make it that I go on a walk AND do yoga every day.  It doesn't have to be an hour of each, but at least a mile walk and at least 15 minutes of stretching every day.  

I'm putting the recipe from last nights dinner on today since I will be having it for lunch and the shakes today are variations on what I've already posted.  We both hate water chestnuts with a passion so I didn't even consider putting them in this recipe, but feel free to add them if you like those slimy crunchy abominations of nature.  Henry looked for Angelino plums but couldn't find whatever that is, so we went with the dried plums suggestion.  Hmm... "dried plums" eh?  Seems to me those used to be called "prunes."  Granted, prunes sound like something old people eat at every meal and dried plums sound like some exotic fruit.  I don't blame them for using that marketing scheme, but I'll have to do some price comparison to see how much more they cost when they don't say the word "prune" on the label...

This meal was really good!  It was the first time I'd ever used coconut oil and it added a really interesting dimension to the dish.  The tamari is basically gluten-free soy sauce, so that was a familiar flavor, along with the garlic.  I'm not sure what is in the five spice powder since the packet just says, "Herbs and Spices, Onion, and Chili," but that Asian spice flavor combined with the sweetness of the plums was really great.  I thought it was really delicious but Henry said it wasn't his favorite of the new recipes.  He said he'd give it a 7 where the other meals were 8 or 9s.  I totally forgot the sesame seed garnish at the end, but don't think it was missing too much without it.  I made some brown rice to have as a side and there are plenty of leftovers of each for lunch today for both of us and maybe for tomorrow, too.  The recipe is below and can also be found on the Clean Program website's pdf file.

Stir-Fried Chicken with Water Chestnuts, Red Cabbage and Angelino Plums
I found dried Angelino plums in the bulk section at my local market and bought them without knowing what they would work in. They worked in granola and breakfast porridges, but this recipe was the absolute perfect place for them. This dish has just the right amount of sweetness and is absolutely delicious, with the soft plums, crunchy water chestnuts and flavorful chicken and cabbage. If you can’t find Angelino plums, any dried plums would work, or I also made this with dried apricots and it was a close second in flavor!

4 small chicken breasts, cut into small pieces (roughly 1-2 inches)
1 teaspoon Chinese five spice powder
1 cup water chestnuts
1 cup chopped Angelino plums (or any dried plums without added sulfur or added sugar)
2 tablespoons coconut or olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
1/4 cup raw coconut amino acids or wheat free tamari
1 small red cabbage, loosely chopped
Sesame seeds to garnish (black or white)

Using the bare minimum of the coconut, sesame or olive oil needed to cook without burning, stir everything together over medium-high heat in a large saucepan or a wok, until the chicken is cooked and the cabbage is tender.
Serve warm, garnished with white or black sesame seeds.
Serves 4-6.
Recipe from http://www.cleanprogram.com/files/goop-recipes.pdf