Lemon Broccoli Chicken

The meat special at Aldi's last week was boneless, skinless chicken breast for $1.69/lb and I loaded up so expect to see a few chicken recipes for a while.  I've also found that cutting the meat into small piece makes it go farther (stretching the food budget)  so I opted to try this stir fry dish. 

Lemon Broccoli Chicken (serves 4)

1 lb            b/s chicken breasts, cut into strips
1/2 C         chopped onion
1                carrot, thinly sliced on a bias
1                garlic clove, minced
2 T             butter
1 T             cornstarch
14 oz         chicken broth  
3 T             lemon juice
1 t              grated lemon peel
1 1/2 C      instant rice, uncooked
1 C            frozen broccoli, thawed

In a skillet, cook chicken, onion, carrot and garlic in butter until chicken is browned (5 min).  Meanwhile, combine cornstarch, broth, lemon juice, peel, and rice.  Add to the skillet and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and add the broccoli.  Cover and simmer 5-10 minutes or until the rice is tender.


The consensus:  First I must confess that I didn't follow the recipe exactly because I didn't have instant rice.  I used brown rice in my rice steamer, added the lemon juice and then enough chicken broth for the steamer's requirements. When the chicken and veggies were ready I threw them in the steamer too.   Everyone agreed the taste of the dish was wonderful with the lemon flavor infused in the rice.  My Schnickelfritz doesn't mind eating carrots and "trees" (his name for the broccoli flowerets).   However,  it lacked the thick sauce we desired/expected from a Chinese dish so the texture seemed dry.  I expect following the recipe exactly you might have that sauciness.  Since I'm going to stick with my brown rice and steamer, I may need to find a lemon sauce recipe I can serve over the dish once it's cooked.