Are you looking for a quick family lunch or dinner recipe that combines the smoothness of a creamy sauce with the freshness of a colorful side? These quick chicken strips with garlic, prepared as a gentle sauté, will win you over instantly. Thanks to quick searing, the meat stays beautifully juicy, and the silky sauce with a subtle garlic note complements it perfectly.
The real crown of this dish is the unconventional side of colorful vegetable rice. Classic steamed rice is fine, but when you toss it in a pan with sautéed zucchini and yellow pepper, you get a meal full of color and a pleasant crunch. Plus, the whole recipe is ready in just a few simple steps. Let’s prepare this wonderful creamy sauté together!
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Preparation time | 15 minutes (slicing meat and vegetables) |
| Cooking and sautéing time | 20 minutes |
| Difficulty | Very easy |
| Main flavors | Delicate garlic cream, juicy chicken, and crunchy zucchini with pepper |
Ingredients You’ll Need
For the creamy chicken sauté:
- 650 g chicken breast: Cleaned and sliced into thin strips.
- 3 tbsp oil + 2 tbsp butter: Oil for searing the meat, butter for the sauce base.
- 1 small onion: Finely chopped.
- 1.5 tbsp plain flour: For making a light roux.
- 1 tbsp tomato paste: Adds depth and a lovely color to the sauce.
- 200 ml milk and 200 ml stock: Together they create a perfectly creamy liquid base.
- Seasoning: 1 tsp dried garlic, salt, and ground black pepper to taste.
For the colorful vegetable rice:
- 200 g dry rice: Cooked in salted water as usual.
- 1 medium zucchini: Diced into small cubes.
- 1 yellow pepper: Diced for a color contrast.
- 1.5 tbsp oil and 2 tbsp chopped onion: For sautéing the vegetables.
- Rice seasoning: Salt, pepper, and a pinch of dried garlic.
Step-by-Step Preparation
1. Searing the Meat and Creating a Flavorful Base
Clean the chicken breasts and slice them into thin, even strips. Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a deep pan and quickly sear the chicken strips until golden. Season the meat with salt and pepper, remove it with a slotted spoon onto a clean plate, and keep it warm. In the same pan with the meat juices, melt 2 tablespoons of butter and let the finely chopped onion turn translucent. Sprinkle with plain flour and stir to make a light roux, then immediately mix in a tablespoon of tomato paste and let it sauté for a minute.
2. Finishing the Silky Sauté
Gradually pour lukewarm milk and hot stock into the pan with the roux and tomato paste, whisking constantly. Stir thoroughly from the bottom to prevent lumps. Season the sauce with a teaspoon of dried garlic (or fresh pressed garlic if you like a stronger kick) and let it gently simmer and thicken over low heat for a few minutes. Then return the reserved chicken and any juices from the plate to the creamy sauce and cook together for another 5 minutes.
3. Preparing the Colorful Vegetable Rice
Cook the dry rice in salted water according to the instructions until soft, then drain. Meanwhile, heat oil in a second, smaller pan and lightly sauté two tablespoons of chopped onion. Add the diced zucchini and yellow pepper. Sauté the vegetables over medium heat for about 5 minutes – they should soften slightly but remain fresh and pleasantly crunchy inside. Finally, add the cooked rice to the pan with the vegetables, season with salt, pepper, and a pinch of garlic, and mix everything thoroughly.
4. Serving
Use a bowl to shape a neat mound of colorful vegetable rice on the plate. Pour a generous portion of hot, creamy chicken sauté around or directly over the rice. For a perfect visual and a fresh spring touch, garnish the dish with chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley or sliced spring onion. Serve immediately.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Dried garlic has the great advantage of evenly flavoring the sauce, it won’t burn in the heat of the pan, and it adds a gentler, slightly sweet undertone without aggressive spiciness to the sauté. However, if you can’t do without the kick of fresh garlic, crush 2 cloves of fresh garlic into the pan at the step when you add the tomato paste, and let it just briefly (30 seconds) release its aroma.
Of course! If you use 10-12% cooking cream instead of regular milk, the sauce will be even creamier, fuller, and silkier. In that case, you can slightly reduce the amount of flour in the roux, as the cream will naturally thicken the sauce on its own.
Zucchini contains a lot of water and softens quickly. The key is to sauté it in a sufficiently hot pan vigorously and really just for a short time (maximum 5 minutes). As soon as the edges of the cubes start to turn golden, immediately add the rice and remove it from the heat. This way, the zucchini will remain beautifully firm and crunchy.
Quick chicken strips with garlic and vegetable rice are absolute proof that even an ordinary piece of chicken can be transformed in no time into a luxurious, colorful meal for the whole family. Enjoy your meal!
