Recipe: Ginger-Infused Rice with Griddled Chicken Thighs and Bok Choy

One of the challenges of cooking in college is that you are limited by your budget. As much as I want to cook lobster or filet mignon all the time, I can't do that because I'd be broke in less than a month. In college, the key thing is to take cheap ingredients and transform them into dishes that shine out and taste really delicious. 

Some of the most common foods in college are rice (a super cheap starch), chicken (one of the cheapest proteins out there), and bok choy (which tend to run on the cheap side). These together can make a brilliant Asian dish if you put some time and effort into each of the ingredients.

In this particular dish, I'm using a rice cooker to steam both the rice and bok choy while infusing them with flavors like ginger and sesame oil. This gives both the rice and bok choy a great aromatic flavor that will complemented marinated chicken thighs that can be cooked in your frying pan, cut up, and served with the rice and bok choy. This makes for one tasty yet cheap meal! 

Recipe will serve up to 4 people.

For the Rice:

3 cups white or brown rice
1 cup bok choy, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon fresh chopped ginger
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
Pepper to season

For the Chicken:

1/2 cup chopped green onion
1 pound chicken thighs
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 cloves chopped garlic
2 teaspoons lime juice
3 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground coriander
Pepper to season

Cooking/Assembling:

1. Combine the chicken thighs, pepper, soy sauce, sesame oil, lime juice, garlic, ginger, coriander, and half of the green onions together in a bowl or container. Let the chicken marinate for at least 30 minutes.
2. Wash the rice, then add in the bok choy, soy sauce, ginger, sesame oil, and pepper. Cook the rice and bok choy in your rice cooker until done.
3. Place a frying pan on medium-high heat with some vegetable/canola oil. Cook the chicken thighs in the pan for about 2 minutes on each side.
4. Let the chicken rest, then serve with the rice and bok choy. Garnish with green onion.

This dish combines the richness of the dark meat in chicken thighs with the aromaticity of the ginger in the rice and bok choy to create a balanced dish with lots of flavor. This will be an Asian dish to enjoy, and its cheap enough that anyone can make it!

I hope you enjoyed this recipe! Let me know what you think and what you would change. If you make it at home, let me know how it turns out! Enjoy, and get cooking! =)