It's tempting to leave work and order take-out from your favorite restaurant after a long day. Who doesn't love having dinner ready right when they get home with very little prep?? Although it does minimize time required to prepare, take-out doesn't always cater to the needs of the health conscious. That's why I like the crock pot so much--it's easy to place food it in it before work, and when you get home at night, dinner is ready!
5 reasons why cooking at home is better than take out:
It's cheaper! The recipe below costs about $1.66 per serving, including the rice and vegetables. (Chicken was on sale for $1.77 at HyVee this week). This is significantly cheaper than your average Chinese takeout, which usually ranges from $9 - $11 per entree.
Leftovers, leftovers, leftovers! Most recipes make at least 4-6 servings. Depending on the size of your family, it's easy to double recipes to make twice the batch. This makes for great leftovers on a busy weeknight.
You can control what goes into it This is especially true for those who are health conscious. This recipe was made healthier by using the chicken breast. There is no added sodium or excess fat in the recipes. The vegetables were steamed, without adding any extra fat, since they take on the flavor of the chicken very easily. You will find many restaurants douse their vegetables in butter and cover with extra seasoning salt
Portion control! Studies show that we have a tendency to eat larger portions if we are served more food in a serving. That being said, cooking at home allows one to measure out how much they are going to eat, and even place it on a smaller plate to deceive your mind into thinking you are eating a lot.
Here's a recipe for Honey Asian Crock Pot Chicken. Change things up with this quick and easy recipe. Packed with flavor, it will leave your taste buds watering for more! This recipe is super easy! The best part about it is that it's made in the crock pot. This chicken also makes for a great freezer meal--combine all ingredients in a large freezer bag and freeze until ready to cook.
Honey Asian Crock Pot Chicken
servings=6
prep time=10 minutes
difficulty=easy
Ingredients
3 chicken breasts (~5 pounds chicken)
1/4 cup ketchup
1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce (or gluten free soy sauce)
1/2 cup hot water
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp. onion powder
3/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 Tablespoon corn starch (reserved for later)
Directions
Spray crock pot with cooking spray. Place chicken breasts in bottom of crock pot.
In a medium bowl, combine ketchup, soy sauce, hot water, honey, garlic powder and onion powder. Mix until dissolved.
Pour mixture evenly over chicken breasts.
Cook on low heat for 6-8 hours.
Once chicken is cooked, shred with two forks.
Add 1 tablespoon or corn starch and mix well. Let sit until thickens, about 5 minutes.
Serve warm over rice. Top with steamed broccoli and carrots if desired.