Queso Smothered Chicken

Have you ever heard of Lawry’s marinades? They can be super good marinaded with chicken or seafood during the Summer. Empty bottle into a ziplock bag a long with whatever choice of protein you used. Then grill it. The thing about those marinades is how much salt is in them. According to their website, 1 tablespoon has 350 mg of sodium! That is crazy. The whole bottle probably has like 10,000 mg of sodium. I decided to give myself a challenge and make my own version of Lawry’s Baja Marinade.  Hardly any salt is used and your heart will thank you! Add the ingredients to a ziplock bag and then the chicken breast. It can marinate overnight or up to hours. The longer it sits the better the chicken gets.

Ingredients for Marinade: 

• 2 tsp of olive oil
• 1/4 cup of chicken stock fat-free
• 1 tablespoon of chili powder
• 1 tsp of smoked paprika
• 1 tsp of cumin
• 1 tsp of onion powder
• 1 tsp of garlic powder
• 1/2 juice of 1 lime

Sometimes I leave the chicken whole as it is in the picture on top or I’ll dice the chicken in strips.

Once the chicken is done cooking and the orzo pasta, place the chicken on top along with some queso cheese sauce. I really like Tostitos Medium Con Queso cheese sauce. 2 tablespoons is only 1 smart point on WW. Depending on whether or not I have the ingredients, I will make a pico de gallo to go on top. If not, just use whatever tomatoes you have on hand. This is one of the most delicious dinners I’ve ever made!

Queso Smothered Chicken

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• Author: Jenna
• Yield: 6 1x

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Ingredients

For the marinade

• 2 tsp of olive oil
• 1/4 cup of chicken stock fat-free
• 1 tablespoon of chili powder
• 1 tsp of smoked paprika
• 1 tsp of cumin
• 1 tsp of onion powder
• 1 tsp of garlic powder
• juice of 1 lime
• 3 medium chicken breasts split in half lengthwise

Orzo pasta

• 1 cup of orzo
• 1 tsp of olive oil
• 2 cups of low sodium chicken stock
• 2 tsp of Mrs Dash Chipotle Seasoning blend
• 2 tablespoons of tomato paste (no salt added)

Toppings

• 1 jar of Tostitos Medium Queso Cheese Sauce
• 2 or 3 medium scallions, chopped
• 2 roma tomatoes, diced.

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Instructions

1. Mix all the ingredients for the chicken marinade in a bowl or in a zip lock bag. Place the chicken inside the marinade and let it sit for 30 minutes or overnight.
2. You can grill the chicken or cook the chicken in the oven. I cooked mine in the oven for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. Then I let the chicken rest for 5 minutes. To grill the chicken, set your grill to high heat between 400 to 600 degrees and cook the chicken on each side for 5 minutes.
3. While the chicken is cooking, make the orzo pasta. Heat the olive oil in a medium sauce pan and add in the uncooked orzo. Stir the orzo around in the olive oil for a bit so that it gets toasted. Be careful not to let it burn. Pour in the chicken stock and let the chicken stock cook for 8 minutes. Add in tomato paste and seasoning. The water should be absorbed when the orzo is done.
4. Serve the chicken with the orzo and top with scallions, diced Roma tomatoes, and queso dip. Enjoy!
5.  Serving Size: 1/2 cup orzo + chicken breast and 2 tablespoons of queso

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Notes

MyWW points: Blue: 5; Green: 9; Purple: 5

 1/2 cup orzo + chicken breast and 2 tablespoons of queso

• Category: Dinner
• Method: Grill
• Cuisine: Mexican

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1
• Calories: 467
• Sugar: 2
• Sodium: 181mg
• Fat: 27
• Saturated Fat: 7
• Carbohydrates: 13G
• Fiber: 2G
• Protein: 45mg