Cookish: What's for Dinner?

So, I saw this recipe in Rachael Ray Magazine: http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipes/chicken-turkey-recipes/coconut-curry-chicken/article.html



But there were a few problems with it, so I decided to tweak it a bit.

1. I don't have any 5-spice powder, but I have made curry before with curry powder and garaham masala, so I had that on hand and used it instead.

2. There are no veggies in this dish, and that just seems wrong. So, I added Cauliflower and chickpeas.

3. There's nothing wrong with white rice, but I think jasmine rice is a little more interesting, so I used that instead.



So, my revised ingredients were:

1 1/2 cups of Jasmine rice

2 teaspoons curry powder

Cauliflower (I think I used about 4 cups)

1 can coconut milk

1/2 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips

2 teaspoons garaham masala

salt and pepper

oil



Cook the rice per package instructions, remembering to salt the water well and/or cook in chicken broth for more flavor.



While the rice is cooking, heat some oil in a pot over medium heat. When hot, add the curry powder and cook for one minute. Add in the cauliflower and stir to coat. add the can of coconut broth and allow to simmer to cook the cauliflower and reduce the coconut milk by half.


In another pan, heat another tbs of oil over medium-high heat. Coat the chicken breast strips with the garaham masala, salt, and pepper. Add the hot pan and saute. When you flip the strips to cook on the other side, add the chickpeas. When chicken is cooked and coconut milk is reduced, add the coconut milk and cauliflower to the chicken mixture and stir to coat. Serve over rice.


It was pretty good, but could use a bit of improvement.

1. I think I should have added salt and pepper to the cauliflower as well, not just the chicken.

2. It needed a little zip. I added tabasco to the finished dish when serving, and that helped. Next time, I may use crushed red pepper in the cooking instead

3. I used low-fat coconut milk, which tasted okay, but did not really thicken up the way I would have liked. Next time, I may use the full-fat stuff or add a cornstarch slurry to thicken it up a bit.



Overall, not bad. If you try it, let me know what you think, or post suggestions here.