Chili chicken is a traditional chili dish, which is made with chicken instead of ground beef. While chili chicken has many redeeming nutritional components, like tomatoes and beans, it is not necessarily a low calorie food. Chili chicken is a Southwest favorite and has gained popularity all over the world. Here are some low calorie substitutions for traditional chili chicken.
Traditional Chili Chicken
Traditional chili chicken usually contains some high calorie ingredients. Most people use beans and vegetables from a can and fry them in an excessive amount of butter. Some people even fry the chicken before adding it to the chili mixture. The base of the chicken chili is usually chicken stock and when it is ready to be served, it is garnished with sizable amounts of cheese. Traditional Chili chicken is high in calories, but fortunately with a few substitutions, it's a dish that is easy to make low calorie, without sacrificing taste.
Low-Calorie Vegetables
To make a low calorie substitution for chili chicken, start with fresh vegetables. Traditional chili chicken recipes use canned vegetables which contain more calories and additives like sugar and salt. Fresh vegetables will also taste better. For added flavor, throw in some herbs like cilantro. If you're going to fry your vegetables, use oil instead of butter. Olive oil and grapeseed oil are good substitutes for butter. If you are going to stew the vegetables, use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
Low-Calorie Chicken
Instead of adding real chicken to your chili chicken, try soy chicken or soy ground beef. It might sound strange, but you most likely won't even notice a difference. Soy chicken is available at most grocery stores and health food stores. If you are allergic to soy, there are wheat gluten meat replacements too. You can season the soy chicken the same way you would real chicken. Just mix it in with the rest of the chili when it is finished cooking. If you must use real chicken, get a boneless, skinless breast. It is also better to buy chicken without growth hormones or antibiotics.
Even Lower Calorie Options
Beans provide a sufficient amount of protein. You don't even need to add a meat (or a fake meat) to your chili. You can liven up the chili by using black beans and red beans. You can even add rice or quinoa to your chili, for added texture. You can also season the rice and beans in the same way you would if you were using chicken.
Adding Flavor
Instead of adding more fat to your chili chicken, flavor it with cilantro, fresh garlic and red onion. Add cumin and sea salt to taste. You can even sprinkle some cheese on top of your chili, but make sure you measure it out. ¼ cup of cheddar cheese contains approximately 9 grams of fat and 120 calories. Use half that amount to top your chili chicken. Now you have a low calorie chili chicken meal with only a fraction of the calories.
