A roast chicken dish with a twist, this meal is rich in protein.
This meal will spice up your Sunday lunch – or indeed any other day! The ingredients will also help stimulate muscle protein synthesis – more of this below.
Ingredients (serves two)
2 whole chicken legs or breasts
1 tbsp nut oil
2 cloves of garlic
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tbsp rice wine
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp Chinese five spice powder
Serve with vegetables or salad – whatever you have available!
How to make it
1. Pre-heat your oven to 180°C.
2. To make the marinade, place all the ingredients – except the chicken – into a food processor and blend for 30 seconds until everything is combined. This is a simple, quick marinade and will work equally well with any white meat or even a roasted pumpkin and beetroot salad with some quinoa.
3. Place the chicken into a large bowl and pour over the marinade. Ensure the chicken is completely covered. The chicken will need to be in the marinade for at least an hour, or up to a day if you can.
4. Finally, put the marinated chicken into a roasting tray and cook for 30-40 minutes.
5. Prepare your vegetables or salad, so they are ready for when the chicken is cooked through.
Why is this recipe good for rowers?
Nutritionist Jacqueline Birtwisle says: “For rowers interested in stimulating muscle growth, amino acids – specifically leucine – play a vital role in stimulating muscle protein synthesis.
“Leucine content in foods does vary, but some foods – notably milk and meat proteins – are higher. It seems that 2-3g leucine is the required amount, which equates to an individual protein serving of 20-25g.
“A medium-sized chicken fillet in this recipe (130g raw weight) provides around 30g total protein, which includes at least 2g leucine. Boom!”
Nutritional content per serving
257 kcal
14g carbohydrate
32g protein
7.6g fat (mostly unsaturated)
<1g fibre
