Buffalo Fried Chicken with Bleu Cheese Rice

My body hurts.

I recently went on vacation.  Well, by vacation, I mean that I escaped my job for a whole four days so I could travel to Pittsburgh and watch my beloved Steelers play.  It's no tropical beach getaway, but it definitely felt good to get away and do something fun.

What was not fun was coming home.  Not only did I have to jump right back into the swing of things- work, school, responsibilities, bills... All of the things I'd managed to forget about for a whole weekend.  On top of that, I came back three pounds heavier than when I left.  This prompted me to jump out of the car after a long trek home and start running my butt back into shape.

That two-mile trip didn't feel fulfilling while I was running it, and it sure doesn't feel good twenty-four hours later, when my muscles are screaming in pain.   Running on those muscles again today didn't help anything.

So, as I sit here typing, I have to tell you that I am extremely proud of myself, and hoping my beautiful internet friends are proud of me, too.  I managed to not only run two days in a row (I am, by definition, a non-runner.  A hater of running.  A hater of being out of breath.), but I also got up off my exhausted little tush and made dinner.  Specifically, this chicken and rice dish.

I'll admit it: while this is easily a one-person job, I did have some help.  I put some extra hands to use frying up the chicken.  Even though it's insanely easy, I just wanted to sit by the stove and watch rice cook.  It's pretty much all I had the energy for.

Sooo... maybe you're not as proud of me as you would be if I had done it all myself.  But hey, I did it.  We did it.  Plus, I managed to keep my eyes open long enough to write this recipe up so I could share it with you.

That's definitely something to be proud of!












Buffalo Chicken with Bleu Cheese Rice

Buffalo Chicken:

1 lb.chicken breasts, diced into 1-1.5" cubes

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups flour

2 cups vegetable oil, for frying

1/2 cup hot sauce

Heat the vegetable oil in a pot over medium high heat. Use a thermometer to achieve a reading of approximately 350F.

Whisk the eggs and buttermilk together in a shallow bowl. Pour flour into another shallow bowl.

Dip the chicken into the egg mixture, then toss into flour. Coat evenly.

Drop into frying oil and cook for 3-5 minutes, or until golden brown.

For the sauce, combine all ingredients in a saute pan over medium heat.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, cooking for 3-5 minutes and stirring frequently.  Remove from heat.

Combine chicken and hot sauce in a bowl.  Toss to combine.

Bleu Cheese Rice:

2 cups water

1 cup rice

2 T butter

1/2 Bleu Cheese dressing

2 tsp hot sauce

Salt & Pepper to taste

1/3 cup sliced green onions for garnish

Bleu cheese crumbles for garnish

Place water and rice in a pot over medium heat.  Bring water to a boil, then reduce to simmer.  Cook for about 15 minutes, or until all the water has absorbed into the rice.

In a separate saute pan, saute butter, hot sauce and seasoning over medium heat.  Bring to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes.

 Stir sauce into rice and cook until everything is warmed through.  Remove from heat.  Stir in bleu cheese dressing.

Ladle a serving of rice in a bowl.  Top with Buffalo Chicken.  Garnish with green onions and crumbled bleu cheese.