let's cook: winter citrus grain bowl with smoky paprika chicken
we love a delicious bowl moment that can work for a shareable app, lunch or dinner.
You get it by now. I love to play with seasonal ingredients. I’m like a farm to table cooking machine and I can’t stop. This week, in the spirit of January, I went with this winter citrus grain bowl with tuscan kale for dinner. I used oranges, lime and grapefruit to brighten up this hearty, deliciouuuuuus bowl with some savory smoky paprika chicken. I love how citrus is in season during the coldest, most dreary months of the year. It’s a reminder that we can make any month bright and zesty if we want!!!
I’m on my “romanticize weeknight dinner” mission , but I love this recipe because it can take on multiple identities as a shareable app, a lunch or a dinner. In the context of my life, I made this for a nice dinner and prepped some of the steps throughout my day! As always, the recipe is here along with the meal prep.
Just a heads up that I will soon be pay walling my meal prep instructions and also dropping monthly dinner party menus exclusive to my substack! So I hope you will stick around and support this fun endeavor! If that’s not in the cards for you, I totally get it and you can stay a free subscriber and get access to all my recipes sent to your email.
Okay LET’S COOK.
Winter Citrus Grain Bowl with Kale, Smoky Paprika Chicken, Feta, and Orange-Lime Vinaigrette
Servings: 2 (head here to adjust the serving size accordingly so you don’t have to do the math!)
Ingredients:
For the Chicken:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
Generous pinch of Kosher salt (enough for both sides of the chicken)
Black pepper, to taste
Avocado oil, for drizzling before baking
2 tbsp cold unsalted butter
For the Grain Bowl:
3 cups cooked farro (start with 1 1/2 cup dry farro or follow package instructions)
1 bouillon cube (chicken or vegetable) or 2 cups chicken stock for cooking the farro
1 bunch tuscan kale, about 3-4 cups finely chopped and massaged
1 tbsp olive oil (for massaging the kale)
Pinch of salt
1 orange or blood orange, peeled and segmented
1 grapefruit, peeled and segmented
1 shallot, minced
1 large avocado, sliced
1/4 cup toasted almonds or pistachios
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
For the Orange-Lime Vinaigrette:
3 tbsp fresh orange juice (or juice from 1 orange)
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 1/2 tsp honey or maple syrup
2 tsp minced shallot (reserved from other minced shallot)
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Method:
For the chicken:
Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). If you have a convection setting use this!
Season the chicken breasts with smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Set aside and let them dry brine while prepping the rest of your produce for the salad. Once everything's prepped, you can start to cook! (See meal prep instructions below for more info.)
Drizzle the chicken breasts with avocado oil. Top each with a tbsp of cold unsalted butter (this helps with some browning when baking.) Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil.
Bake for 20–25 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 165°F (75°C). Let rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
For the farro:
Rinse the dry farro under cold water.
In a medium saucepan or shallow pot, combine farro with water (measure according to package instructions) or chicken stock (add a bouillon cube if using water). If the stock or bouillon has no salt, add a generous pinch of salt.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook according to package instructions until tender and most of the liquid is absorbed.
Drain any excess liquid, fluff with a fork, and set aside.
Place the chopped kale in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Massage the kale with your hands for 1–2 minutes until it softens and darkens in color.
In a small bowl or jar, whisk together orange juice, lime juice, honey and shallot. Stream in olive oil while whisking then season with salt, and pepper.
Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
For the bowl:
Combine the farro and kale. Add 2/3 of the citrus, reserving the rest for topping. Mix in minced shallot, toasted pistachios, and crumbled feta cheese. Mix in half of the vinaigrette and taste to make sure everything is seasoned properly.
Slice the baked chicken and arrange on top. Arrange sliced avocado on top on the other side of the bowl. Top with the rest of the citrus.
Drizzle with more vinaigrette to taste just before serving. If you have extra feta and pistachios you can garnish with those too.
How to Prep it Out!
Total time: 40 minutes of active cooking time! Use the passive cooking time to do other prep or you can spread it out over a few days if you want to meal prep this. As always go to my website to multiply serving sizes if you want to meal prep this for the week!
1. Prep the Chicken
This takes approximately 10 minutes. You can dry brine the chicken up to 24 hours in advance. I like to just let it sit in the dry brine until I bake but you can bake it ahead of time up to 3 days in advance!
Dry Brine (Active: 5 minutes, Passive: Up to 24 hours):
Pat the chicken breasts dry and season them with smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper. Cover and refrigerate.Bake (Active: 5 minutes, Passive: 25 minutes which I like to use to chop all my produce for the salad!):
Preheat your oven to 375°F. Drizzle the chicken breasts with avocado oil and top each with 1 tbsp butter. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil. Bake for 20–25 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Let rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
2. Make the Orange-Lime Vinaigrette
This takes approximately 5 minutes. It can be made up to 5 days ahead if desired. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the fresh orange juice, lime juice, honey, minced shallot, red wine vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper.
Taste and adjust seasoning. Store in the fridge and shake before use.
3. Cook the Farro
This takes approximately 30 minutes (10 minutes active, ~20 minutes passive but depends on the package instructions). If you want, you can cook the farro 2–3 days ahead and store it in an airtight container in the fridge.
Rinse the Farro (Active: 2 minutes): Rinse 1 1/2 cups of dry farro under cold water.
Cook the Farro (Passive: 30 minutes): Combine farro with chicken stock (or water and a bouillon cube). Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until tender (about 25 minutes).
Cool and Store if Desired: Drain excess liquid, fluff with a fork, and set aside to cool. Store in the fridge. I like to keep in my favorite Anyday Containers because I can throw them right in the microwave.
4. Prep the Kale
This takes approximately 5 minutes. Can be done 1–2 days ahead. Store the kale in the fridge. I like to just do this right before making the recipe so the greens are as fresh as possible!
Wash and chop the Tuscan kale, removing any tough stems.
Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Massage the kale for 1–2 minutes until softened. Store in an airtight container.
5. Prepare the Citrus and Shallots
This takes approximately 10 minutes, which I like to do while the chicken brines. Can be done 1–2 days ahead if desired.
Segment the Citrus (Active: 5 minutes): Peel and segment the orange and grapefruit. Store in a container.
Mince the Shallots (Active: 5 minutes): Peel and mince the shallot, storing 2 tsp of minced shallot for the vinaigrette and the rest for the bowl.
7. Assemble the Bowl
This takes approximately 10 minutes right before you serve!!!
Combine the cooked farro, massaged kale, citrus segments, minced shallot, toasted nuts, and crumbled feta in a large bowl.
Add 1/2 of the vinaigrette and toss to combine.
Slice the baked chicken and arrange on top of the salad with sliced avocado and any remaining citrus segments.
Drizzle with more vinaigrette and top with nuts and feta.
Total Time Breakdown:
Chicken Prep: 10 minutes
Vinaigrette: 5 minutes
Farro Cooking: 40 minutes (10 minutes active, 30 minutes passive)
Kale Massage: 5 minutes
Citrus & Shallots: 10 minutes
Assembling the Bowl: 10 minutes
Grand Total: ~1.5 hours (or spread out over 1–2 days if desired but you can also use lots of the passive cooking time to consolidate the cooking time to 40 minutes total!)
I hope this breakdown makes meal prepping easier and more enjoyable! Enjoy your delicious grain bowl. 😊