Dieting is not an easy feat. There’s a lot of self-control and meditation required to become successful, and sometimes when we go diet-overboard we end up binge-eating all the bad stuff. Yikes! Talk about counter-productive.
I happen to firmly believe that eating right doesn’t mean you have to permanently shun out all things that you love. The secret is eating the right things in bigger portions and all the desserts and guilty foods in much smaller ones. Yes, portioning. If you used to eat a whole slice of cake by yourself then learn how to share the other half! Apart from eating right, of course exercising regularly is super important as well. I’m a big fan of exercise and doing some sort of sport.
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle doesn’t have to be that hard. It doesn’t have to make you feel so miserable! In this current day and age there are so many good-tasting options available to us that can fill in the role of our favourite foods that we need to cut out in the name of our diets, the most basic of which, brown rice for white rice.
For people who are just starting to make lifestyle changes for themselves and their family, it might be hard to completely shift to brown rice in one go, so I suggest this little technique: Get yourself a pack of Doña Maria Jasponica/Miponica White Rice and also a pack of Jasponica/Miponica Brown Rice. Start by mixing in a small amount of brown into your white rice, gradually increasing the content until you become accustomed to the nutty brown rice. For every cup of rice, start by replacing maybe 1/4 cup of your white rice to brown, then increase the amount of brown after some time until you get used to eating more brown than white.
However if you truly love your white rice and still want an equal amount of healthy brown in it, I suggest going for Doña Maria’s Jasponica White Plus Brown. At our house, we prefer buying a pack of Doña Maria White and Brown separately so that every time we’re more in the mood for one or the other, we can control the portions. Sometimes a certain type of dish simply goes better with a certain type of rice. This delicious grilled chicken recipe I’m sharing today however goes well with any of Doña Maria’s rice variants, but when I made this we cooked up our rice with a wee bit more white than brown.
At the very least, I think mixing in a little bit of brown rice in place of white can help jumpstart one’s journey to a healthier lifestyle. Brown rice is basically grain that’s been stripped of its outer husk layer only, leaving the nutritious bran layer intact. Here are just some of the nutrients in brown rice that give a ton of benefits:
- Fiber and magnesium that reduces the risk of heart disease, decreases cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and blood coagulation
- Selenium that helps reduce the risk of colon cancer
- Magnesium that improves the function of insulin in regulating blood sugar levels
- Rice bran oil that helps lower cholesterol
- Magnesium and fiber that help normalize digestive function and promote weight control
Erase the concept that healthy food equals non-delicious food, because with Doña Maria’s rice you can get the best of both worlds. And you know what pairs perfectly with Doña Maria rice? Grilled chicken– it’s yummy and also healthier than the deep-fried kind. This version has chicken cooked with a sweet peach glaze that’s been mixed with pickled jalapeños for a spicy-sour kick. Just remember to keep brushing the chicken as you grill to ensure those flavours attach themselves unto the meat. This dish is scrumptious with rice and a side of peaches!
Grilled Chicken with Peach-Jalapeño Glaze
Ingredients
- 2 cups peach preserves
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil, plus more for brushing
- 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 Tablespoon finely chopped garlic
- 1/4 cup chopped pickled jalapeño, plus more for serving
- pinch of salt
- dash of pepper
- 8 deboned chicken breasts
- Doña Maria rice, to serve
- Fresh or canned peaches, to serve (optional)
Instructions
- 1. In a medium bowl, combine preserves, olive oil, soy sauce, mustard, garlic, and jalapeno. Season with salt and pepper. Reserve about ½ cup of this glaze for serving the chicken with.
- 2. Preheat the grill. Brush the chicken breasts with olive oil, then season with salt and pepper. Brush chicken skin-side up with the glaze and let it sit while the grill heats up.
- 3. Once grill is hot enough, set chicken skin-side down and cook until golden brown, about 6 to minutes. Meanwhile, brush the other side of the chicken liberally with the glaze.
- 4. Flip chicken over and cook other side for 5 minutes, brushing the skin-side liberally with more glaze. Continue flipping the chicken, cooking in 3 to 5 minute intervals, until golden and cooked through. Remember to brush each side well before flipping. The chicken will also have some nice grill marks by the time they are done.
- 5. If using fresh peaches, these can be halved, seeded, and grilled alongside the chicken. Brush the peaches with some glaze as you grill them. Canned peaches may be a bit too soft to grill so you can just serve them with the chicken, sliced in whatever manner you please.
- 6. Serve chicken fresh off the grill with the reserved peach glaze, sliced peaches, and Doña Maria rice. You can also serve them with extra slices of pickled jalapeño, if desired.
Notes
Check out the Doña Maria Rice website, like them on Facebook, and follow them on Instagram for more recipe ideas!
Full disclosure: This post is sponsored by Doña Maria Rice, but all opinions stated above are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that help keep The Tummy Train up and running!
