Ginger Chicken with Bok Choy and Couscous

From Everyday with Rachael Ray



Ingredients:
1/2 cup soy sauce
6 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons sesame oil
One 1 1/2-inch piece ginger,peeled and grated
1 bunch scallions, 1/2 thinly sliced and 1/2 cut into 2-inch pieces
3 star anise (optional)
6 skinless, boneless chicken thighs, trimmed and halved
Salt
One 10-ounce box plain couscous
1 1/4 pounds baby bok choy, halved lengthwise and rinsed

Directions:
1. In a shallow baking dish, whisk together the soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil and ginger; stir in the 2-inch scallion pieces and the star anise, if using. Season the chicken with salt and add to the marinade, turning to coat. Let marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes.

2. Line a footed metal colander with 2 layers of damp cheesecloth, allowing 2 inches of overhang. Place in a pot and add enough water to just reach the colander bottom. Bring to a simmer; have a small pot of boiling water on the side.

3. Pour the couscous into the colander. Place the chicken thighs on top in a single layer, pressing up the sides of the colander, if necessary; reserve the marinade. Cover and steam, adding more hot water as needed, until the chicken is cooked through, 25 to 30 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, simmer the reserved marinade until thickened, about 4 minutes; strain.

5. When the chicken is almost done, scatter the bok choy on top, season with salt and steam for 3 minutes. Transfer the bok choy and chicken to a platter, drizzle with the marinade and top with half of the sliced scallions. Stir the remaining scallions into the couscous, season with salt and serve with the chicken.

Comments:
This recipe caught my eye because of the bok choy. Adam recently announced that we needed to eat more red meat because a recent blood test indicated his iron was low.

(I'll pause for a moment for the preposterousness of that statement to sink in.)

Low and behold, when I googled "foods high in iron", bok choy was on the list. Angels in heaven were singing that I would not be forced to eat burgers and steak every night. Bwahaha.

So. Anyway. The recipe. The instuctions are kind of odd and the whole "one pot" thing is a little strange too. I ditched the colander idea and used my steamer basket in my big old soup pot. It worked ok, but the couscous didn't really cook through. The flavor and food combination was good, but I might make it differently next time.