This dish is made with sautéed bite-sized chicken thighs and grape tomatoes cooked with spiralized zucchini, fresh mozzarella and basil. Do I have your attention yet? It’s obviously low-carb as well. This comes together in a little over 30 minutes and is delicious.

You are familiar with most of the ingredients, right? The spiralized zucchini is somewhat new, at least to me. Why, yes, you can buy a machine to spiral cut the zucchini. But honestly, do you need something else to fit into the back of a cabinet? I’m looking at you breadmaker and panini grill. Most grocery stores have many diferent spiralized veggies. They cost way too much, but they are convenient and fun! I especially love the riced veggies, like sweet potatoes. But that’s a conversation for another day. Those bad boys play in the freezer until you need them. The spiralized veggies have a much shorter shelf life so buy them when you will be using them.

Let’s make dinner!

16 ounce package of spiral cut zucchini

1/2-1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breast or thighs, cut in 1/2 inch cubes

kosher salt

pepper

1/4 tsp. dried oregano

olive oil

3 garlic cloves chopped

1 onion, cut in thin slices

3/4 lb grape tomatoes, cut in half

pinch crushed red pepper flakes

1 tbsp. chopped fresh basil

1 package of spiralized zucchini

2 oz. fresh mini mozzarella balls, cut in half

You can play around with the portion of ingredients. If you don’t like garlic, you can omit it. Same goes for the mozzarella. I strongly suggest you use all the ingredients. If you don’t have crushed red pepper flakes, don’t sweat it. I like a little more chicken. I don’t like to use part of a package and put the rest in the freezer. It will never be used. It just gets pushed to the back until a power outage and then it gets tossed.

Before you start heating pans and getting out serving dishes, cut up the chicken. It takes longer than you think. Put it in a bowl and set it aside. Same for your onions and garlic. You can wait on the mozzarella if you don’t want to dirty another bowl. That is added at the very end.

Season the chicken with 1/2 tsp salt, pepper and oregano. I confess to using Lawry’s seasoned salt more often than regular salt and pepper.

The recipe calls for a non-stick pan. I don’t like them. I have a couple of heavy bottomed pans that I prefer. Any pan can be used, just watch the heat. Heat the pan before you add the oil. Toss a sprinkle or two of water in the hot pan. If the water rolls, and evaporates, it’s ready for the oil. I don’t measure my olive oil but you need enough to lightly coat the pan. Let the olive oil heat up before you add the chicken. It takes a couple of seconds. Add the chicken and cook. Let it sit for a couple of minutes to brown. If you keep stirring, the chicken won’t have the wonderful brown color. Just watch to make sure it doesn’t burn. You can lower or raise the heat as needed. You can cook in batches if you are using more chicken. I often double the recipe for my family. Stir it to cook on all sides. When it’s no longer pink inside, put cooked chicken in a clean bowl.

I love cooked onions. The original recipe called for only garlic. I think the onion adds another dimension. Add more oil to your pan and add the onions. I cut my peeled onion in half from root to top, and then cut thin slices If the bottom of the pan has browned from the chicken, just cook the onions on a lower heat, adding a little more olive oil. This brown will add to “sauce” the liquid from the zucchini and tomatoes. When the onions are soft, add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly. You want them to release some liquid so the garlic doesn’t burn. If there isn’t much liquid being released you can add the zucchini right away. If you think you need more oil, add a little. Add the package of zucchini and raise the heat. Break the zucchini up with a spoon or fork. Stir it occasionally so it all cooks evenly. The zucchini does cook down. This should take anywhere from 5-10 minutes. Add the crushed pepper flakes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. When the zucchini is cooked, add the chicken back in to the skillet and finish cooking. Add the basil. Let those flavors meld together. Add the mozzarella when you’re ready to serve. To add some carbs just call the spiral cut zucchini, zucchini noodles. You’re welcome.

Enjoy!

Here is the original recipe.