Chicken and Mashed Potatoes
This Chicken and Mashed Potatoes recipe combines comforting flavors of creamy, cheesy mashed potatoes with a savory, flavorful chicken and vegetable filling. The food gets served up in little nests, with each serving containing a carb, protein, and vegetable.
Servings: 6 nests
Equipment
Ingredients
- avocado oil for greasing the baking dish
The Nests
- 10 medium yellow potatoes
- ⅓ cup grated parmigiano
- 1 tablespoon milk
- salt and pepper to taste
The Chicken
- 3 tablespoons avocado oil
- 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 onion finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ½ bell pepper diced
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon dry oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425F (220C). Lightly oil a baking dish.
- Peel the potatoes and then boil them in salted water until fork tender. Drain the potatoes and return them to the pot. Mash them with a potato masher and then add the parmigiano, milk, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine.
- Let the mashed potatoes cool slightly and then shape the mashed potatoes into 6 equal size balls. Place the mashed potato balls snuggly inside the oiled baking dish. Using your hands or a spoon make an indent in each mashed potato ball to form a nest. Set aside.
- Add the oil to a pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the chicken and cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the onion, garlic, bell pepper, paprika, and oregano. Season with salt and pepper. Let cook for another 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened and there is no raw garlic smell.
- Add the tomato paste to the chicken and vegetable mixture, stir, and remove the pan from the heat. Fill the mashed potato nests with the chicken mixture and then top them with shredded mozzarella. Bake for 15-20 minutes until melted and golden brown.
Notes
- Nutritionally Balanced: What I love about this Chicken and Mashed Potatoes recipe is how each serving includes everything you need in a well-balanced meal: carbs from potatoes, protein from chicken, vitamins and fiber from bell peppers, and fat from cheese and avocado oil. Plus, tons of flavor from spices!
- Kid-Friendly Meal: This is a great recipe for getting young kids involved in the kitchen. Have the kids help you shape the cooled mashed potatoes into little nests. They can use a spoon to place the chicken and vegetable mixture inside each nest.
- Endless Customizations: There are so many ways to make this recipe according to your preferences, what you have on hand, or what your diet dictates. Mashed potatoes can be replaced with mashed cauliflower or sweet potatoes. Chicken can be replaced with any meat or plant-based meat alternative. You can use any vegetable instead of or in addition to bell pepper. And the world is your oyster when it comes to seasonings.
- Leftovers: You can store leftover nests in a tightly sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days. These are easiest to reheat in the microwave.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 nest | Calories: 530kcal | Carbohydrates: 66g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 84mg | Sodium: 323mg | Potassium: 2013mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 547IU | Vitamin C: 86mg | Calcium: 176mg | Iron: 4mg
