READY IN 35 mins

Sweet Chili Lime Chicken with Cilantro Couscous

Read Reviews (14)

"A very flavorful Asian-type meal with a sweet heat that incorporates my favorite flavors (chili, lime, and cilantro) with a little bit of sugar. The sauce glazes the chicken and is wonderful over the cilantro couscous. You can substitute salt and pepper to taste for MSG." — Grumpy's Honeybunch

Directions

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat; cook and stir chicken breast cubes in the hot oil until the juices run clear and chicken is no longer pink inside, 5 to 6 minutes. Sprinkle chicken with monosodium glutamate as it cooks. Remove chicken from skillet.
Mix soy sauce, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, lime juice, and lime zest in a bowl, stirring to dissolve sugar. Pour sauce into hot skillet, bring to a boil, and reduce heat to low. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce begins to reduce slightly, 3 to 4 minutes. Mix cooked chicken into sauce and cook until sauce forms a glaze on chicken pieces, about 2 to 3 more minutes, stirring often.
Bring vegetable broth to a boil in a saucepan. Stir couscous into vegetable broth, turn off the heat, and let couscous stand until broth is absorbed, about 5 minutes. Stir cilantro into couscous.
Arrange couscous onto a serving platter, top with chicken and sauce, and serve with lime wedges. Squeeze lime wedges over couscous and chicken before serving.

Kitchen-Friendly View

PREP 15 mins
COOK 15 mins
READY IN 35 mins

Reviews More Reviews

Most Helpful Positive Review

Jan 14, 2013

This was a wonderful recipe!!! I did not have couscous on hand so I used a farro recipe instead. (Jenni's Italian Farro Pilaf) Which was also wonderful. The only thing I did differently was put about a tablespoon of fresh cilantro, two garlic pressed cloves and more red pepper flakes. Awesome flavor!!!! My family loved it!!!The chicken came out so moist and tender, it was not dry. I will definitely add to my recipe box.

—Babs

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Most Helpful Critical Review

Feb 03, 2013

The lime was a bit too strong and it became way too salty as it reduced.

—tricia500

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21 Ratings

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Jan 11, 2013

This recipe is fantastic. We made some small substitutions, but only to make it gluten free. We changed the couscous to quinoa, and cooked it to the directions on the box, but still using the broth. We also made sure to use GF soya sauce. We also increased the chilli flakes to 1 tbsp, since we like our food with a bit of a kick. All in all, great dinner!!

—BrittG

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Jan 14, 2013

Excellent! Next time I will add some fresh veggies.

—TerriM

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Apr 07, 2013

This was very good - but why on earth would anyone put MSG into their food - it is proven to cause cancer!

—whistlercook

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Feb 12, 2013

I made this for dinner last night and we loved it! Definitely a new addition to the regular rotation. I didn't have MSG so I used salt and pepper. I also used skinless, boneless chicken thighs instead of breasts. I s&p'd the chicken thighs, browned them over med. high heat in the olive oil til they were cooked through then moved them to a plate. Mix the soy, brown sugar, lime juice and zest and a dash of ground red chile pepper instead of crushed red pepper and add to the skillet, scraping any tasty bits from the bottom. Added the chicken back in after the sauce had slightly reduced and allowed the chicken to warm back up a bit basting with the sauce. Also made the couscous using homemade chicken stock some dried cilantro (had it on hand already) and 2 cloves "microplaned" (or finely chopped) garlic. Do yourself a favor and don't forget the fresh lime wedges when serving, they give such a fresh, bright flavor to the chicken. This is such a flavorful dish! Thanks for sharing!

—Jessica

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Jan 17, 2013

I thought this recipe was excellent! I made a few minor modifications: I marinated the chicken for 20 minutes in a 1 tablespoon dry sherry, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and a clove of garlic (minced). I also added garlic powder to the sauce and omitted the MSG. I wanted to add a vegetable so I steamed broccoli and mixed it in when I added the sauce to the cooked chicken. Delicious!

—Heather

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May 21, 2013

We love this. We make it with Salmon and don't use MSG, but everything else is according to the recipe.

—beka_b

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Nutrition

Calories
380 kcal
19%

Carbohydrates
52 g
17%

Cholesterol
59 mg
20%

Fat
6.2 g
10%

Fiber
3 g
12%

Protein
28.4 g
57%

Sodium
1675 mg
67%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Nutritional Information

Sweet Chili Lime Chicken with Cilantro Couscous

Serving Size: 1/4 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 4
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 380
Calories from Fat: 56

% Daily Value *
Total Fat 6.2g 10 %
Saturated Fat 1.2g 6 %
Cholesterol 59mg 20 %
Sodium 1675mg 67 %
** Potassium 334mg 9 %
Total Carbohydrates 52g 17 %
Dietary Fiber 3g 12 %
Protein 28.4g 57 %
Sugars 22.2g
** Vitamin A 19 %
** Vitamin C 13 %
Calcium 8 %
Iron 21 %
** Thiamin 12 %
** Niacin 105 %
** Vitamin B6 23 %
** Magnesium 15 %
** Folate 15 %

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.