Lime Chicken

The hot sauce I use is Franks Red Hot, however, in many recipes I'll add a drop or two of the hottest sauce in the world: Z Nothing Beyond Hot Sauce.

You can also spice it up with a bit of cayenne pepper, keeping in mind there are "usually" two variations of cayenne pepper, the 40,000 hu and the 90,000 hu. I use the 90,000 hu (or heat units...actually scoville units) which is nearly the hottest of cayenne peppers. Once in a while I find one that is 120,000 hu.

Now please, use fresh squeezed lime juice. You do not want to ruin this recipe with something locked in a bottle with preservatives. Additionally, you'll want fresh organic limes to make some lime zest for the cheese on top. You can make lime zest by using a cheese grater, the smaller gratings.

And when I say "cilantro leaves" I mean the leaves. If you chop up the stems, your recipe will turn bitter, very bitter. So take some time, turn on your favorite program on TV and pull the leaves off the stems.

When I marinate, I use the Food Saver Marinator, which vacuums out the air and the juices go right into the meat. Then, once in a while I'll open the fridge and shake everything up. It's the only way to marinate.

The most difficult spice to find here will be your Lime Basil. You can't hear it enough that you MUST shop at your local farmers market. There you will find fresh spices and dried spices, dried by the farmers who grew them. Lime Basil is nearly impossible to find in a supermarket.

After you've put the marinade in the fridge, you'll want to make the cheese topping (that way everything will be ready to go when you start cooking). For a cheese topping, I like to mix two cheeses, usually a creamy Monterey Jack with a Sharp Cheddar. However, if you can find a creamy goat cheese, this will make the recipe more authentic. So, grate your cheese, about four ounces (or a bit more) and add your chopped cilantro leaves, crushed garlic, lime zest, hot pepper flakes (or cayenne) and lime basil. Mix thoroughly and put that away in the fridge too.

When ready to cook, melt your butter or coconut oil in a pan, then add your meat. The amount of marinade sauce you'll add is up to you; depends on how much sauce you'll want to make. This will also determine how much Konjac Flour to use. One teaspoon of konjac flour will solidify (really solid) half a cup of liquid. So use it sparingly.

Add the extra Celtic Sea Salt and cumin. Cook your chicken breasts thoroughly and make sure they are evenly coated with the marinade. When they are done cooking, add slowly while whipping rapidly with a fork the konjac flour. We're going to turn the marinade into a sauce.

Turn off the heat, gather the chicken pieces together, drizzle the thickened sauce over the chicken, and then cover the chicken with your cheese mixture, cover the pan and let the cheese melt.

In three minutes, it will be perfect. When you serve it onto a plate, if there's some sauce left in the pan, drain it over the chicken on your plate.

Now I serve this with Spanish Rice. And Spanish Rice is the easiest darn thing you'll ever create. First, make rice (I use BLACK RICE only which requires a bit more water than regular and a bit more cooking). When the rice is nearly finished cooking, I cut up hard veggies such as carrots and beets (into tiny pieces) and add them to the rice. We're making Rice Pilaf. Then when done, I cut of softer veggies, zucchini and celery into small pieces and add those and set aside. Now, another reason why you HAVE to shop at your local farmers market is you will find the best darn homemade salsas there. I found a lime chipotle salsa at mine which was absolutely a perfect fit with this recipe. So, when your cheese is melting, turn up the heat on the rice, add the salsa, and keep stirring. It's done in just minutes. Simplest way to make Spanish Rice ever.

This recipe serves two, but the nice thing about it, if you want to add more chicken, go ahead, there's marinade enough for six servings, even eight, just increase your cheese and spices in the cheese accordingly. For cooking, however, you won't need more butter/coconut oil and the amount of konjac flour stays the same.