If you think healthy food tastes bad...

...think again!

I love getting reader requests. Especially because it prevents me from having to come up with my own ideas. And this week, I was really feeling the lack of creativity.

Well, until I was requested to make orange chicken. Those of you who frequent my Facebook profile probably saw this request, and probably also assumed I wasn't going to take it seriously.

I thought it would make for a good challenge. Note: I've never tried orange chicken before. Despite that slight issue, I think this dish came out quite well, and it really didn't take long to make!

Vegetarian Orange "Chicken"

Ingredients:

• 1 box seitan (1 lb)
• 1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• ~2 tablespoons orange juice (or juice of 1 orange)
• 1 tablespoon zest of an orange
• 1-2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1/2 tablespoon minced ginger (or more, if desired)
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1/3 cup rice vinegar
• 1 cup water
• salt/pepper
• optional: crushed chili peppers or chili paste
• optional: assorted vegetables (I used broccoli and snap peas)
• optional: substitute tofu for seitan

[Edit: this recipe makes a lot more of the sauce than necessary for one box of seitan. I would suggest using less water if you prefer a less soupy dish. I liked the extra sauce as it added more flavor!]

If eating with rice, prepare the rice beforehand.

Heat oil on the stove and add the seitan. (If using veggies, add those too). 

Add salt and pepper, and saute. Then turn the heat to low. 

In another pot, add the orange juice, lemon juice, water, rice vinegar, and soy sauce and heat on medium-high.

Add the orange zest, ginger, and garlic, and chilis, and bring to a boil.

Stir, and take the pot off the stove. Let cool. To thicken the sauce a bit, I added 1/2 teaspoon of flour. 

Add the sauce to the seitan. 

Serve with brown rice.

I'd say I'm a fan of orange chicken after eating this. 

And it's perfectly healthy. Success!

To conclude, check out the strawberry banana smoothie that I made this afternoon.

Vanilla yogurt, milk, 1/2 frozen banana, a few frozen strawberries, and vanilla protein powder.

Who needs Jamba when you can make your own? :)