Four easy and healthy chicken weeknight recipes on the table in under 30 minutes! Recipes include (vegan) orange chicken and rice, vegetable pasta with chicken sausage, chicken salad avocado boats and baked chicken with quinoa!
On the average weeknight I don’t get home from work until somewhere between 5:45-6p. This leaves limited time to get the kids fed, bathed, homework done, lunch bag packed and relaxing before bedtime. I don’t even want to think about how crazy our nights will get when we add sports and/or dance into the mix. For now, this is all the crazy I can handle. Usually (except for one day a week) I’m tackling the crew solo since my husband doesn’t get home from work until the kids are in bed. Sounds exhausting, right?! It is. So that’s why I’ve been keeping dinner prep to under 30 minutes each night. Occasionally I’ll throw a roast of some kind in the slow cooker before I leave for work.
This past week’s menu was mostly semi-homemade, microwavable and no shortage of flavor. I’ve been loving the Bird’s Eye Steamfresh options. We had the quinoa & spinach and their vegetable pastas this week. The cauliflower mashed and rice are really tasty options too. Pro Tip: Your kids won’t even know the pasta is 100% vegetables #MomWin >> You can check out all the Bird’s Eye Steamfresh options and see what’s available in your local store.<<
4 Easy Weeknight Chicken Dinners
Chicken Sausage Penne Pasta
The quickest weeknight meal you’ll ever make!
Ingredients:
Aidells Chicken Apple Sausage
Bird’s Eye 100% Vegetable Pasta
Pomi Tomato Sauce
Directions:
Heat chicken apple sausage. (Grill, stovetop, or microwave)
Cook Vegetable Pasta according to package directions, approximately 3:30 minutes in the microwave.
Add Pomi tomato sauce to the bag along with salt, pepper, dried italian seasoning, and garlic.
Stir and serve!
For the homemade version>> Penne with Spinach & Chicken Sausage by Savvy Saving Couple
Mandarin Orange Chick’n with Rice
This is a vegan recipe! (Shh…don’t tell my husband!)
Ingredients:
Gardein Mandarin Orange Crispy Chick’n
Uncle Ben’s 90 second Jasmine rice
green onions
Directions:
Cook chick’n according to package directions. (appoximately 8 minutes total)
Cook jasmine rice in the microwave for 90 seconds.
Chop green onions.
To assemble: place rice on a plate, top with chicken and drizzle sauce overtop. Sprinkle with green onions.
For the homemade version>> Chinese Orange Chicken (not vegan) by Damn Delicious
Baked Chicken with Quinoa & Spinach
Ingredients:
Boneless Chicken breasts (thin cut)
Bird’s Eye Quinoa & Spinach
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place thin cut boneless chicken breasts on a baking sheet (lightly sprayed). Season with salt, pepper, poultry seasoning and a little bit of lemon pepper. Cook for 20-30 minutes. (Internal temp should be 165 degrees F)
Cook quinoa & spinach according to package instructions in the microwave.
Serve and enjoy!
For the homemade version>> Quinoa Spinach Power Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette by Ahead of Thyme
Chicken Salad Stuffed Avocado Boats
These are perfect for hot summer evenings when you don’t want to cook!
Ingredients:
Cooked Chicken (rotisserie chicken works great here)
red onion
celery
avocado
mayo
parsley
Directions:
Cut cooked chicken into small pieces. Chop red onion and celery. (I don’t really measure, just go by how much you like!)
Add chicken, onion, celery and mayo to a bowl and mix until combined well.
Season with salt and pepper.
Cut a ripe avocado in half, removing the pit. If the pit was on the smaller side you may need to remove some of the avocado with a spoon. (Mash any avocado removed and stir into the chicken salad!)
Spoon a generous portion into each avocado half and sprinkle with chopped parsley.
For the best homemade (whole 30 approved) mayo >>Paleo Mayo by The Movement Menu
You might like these other recipes too! Be sure to pin for later and follow along my Food and Drink Recipe board on Pinterest!
