Miso Maple Chili Crisp Chicken + 3 recipes to use it in

episode #3 of meal prep for food snobs!

Hi! Welcome to “good mood food” from Kale Me Maybe’s Carina Wolff. If you’ve made it here and aren’t yet a subscriber, come join! You can expect recipes, musings, and faves in your inbox every week! Paid subscribers get even more on Saturdays — right now I’m doing a 30-minute budget meal series! Learn more about the paid tier of my newsletter here. You can also try a week for free!

Hello!! I’m so excited to have so many new people joining me here, and I’m so happy that this new meal prep series is resonating with so many of you. Last week, I was working on my newsletter, and I spent hours filming, editing, and typing up all the recipes, but I felt a little frustrated after it all because I figured no one would see it due to the unpredictable algorithm. I was so elated that this wasn’t the case, and I won’t lie, it definitely motivated me to keep the series going this week. But also, now I feel a lot of pressure to live up to expectations!

I worked hard again on this week’s recipes, and I’m also excited to keep doing more! I may not be getting any sleep this week (help), but it sure feels good to know I’m helping people with their cooking!

THINGS I’M LOVING

I’m super into fancy French butter right now. I bought this Beurre de Baratte because I wanted something nice to accompany my homemade English muffins, and then I found out later it’s Ina Garten’s butter of choice, so I feel like a woman of taste. I recently made this sardine toast using the butter, and it came out beautifully, so now I’ve found my new hyperfixation meal.

I have a great collection of matching dinnerware, but for some reason, we were a family of mismatched mugs. I was okay with that until all of our handles started breaking, and then it was time to get a matching set. Fable was kind enough to to send me these matte navy mugs (which also happen to be on sale right now), and we’ve been so happy to have them! I love the color and especially the size — they’re roomy, but not too massive.

I bought these striped shortalls from Levis last year when I was pregnant, but since I had a big belly, I couldn’t fit into them! Now that I’ve given birth, it’s my time to shine. I also own them in the light wash, and they have been a staple for me during warm weather. Levis has the BEST fit when it comes to overalls — loose and comfy, but not overly baggy so that you feel like you’re drowning.

RECIPE!

Welcome back to “Meal Prep For Food Snobs,” the series for people who hate eating the same thing everyday but want the ease and convenience of meal prep!

This week, we are making a sweet and spicy baked chicken made with a miso, maple, and chili crisp marinade that will then be used in a rice bowl, a soup, and a salad. You’ll also prep some vegetables ahead of time that will be used in multiple dishes!

These recipes are all dairy-free, which to be honest was a happy accident, but last week we had a lot of dairy, so it only feels right. They also can be made gluten-free if you just substitute out soy sauce for tamari!

I also went heavy on the veggies this week, so it feels extra healthy. At first glance, the ingredients lists may seem long, but like I mentioned above, you’ll prep most of the vegetables at the start, and then use them multiple times later on.

The other great thing about these recipes is that you don’t have to worry about reheating your chicken and drying it out. The first recipe is a rice bowl, and you’ll use the chicken straight out of the oven for that one. The second recipe is a soup, and the chicken reheats in the broth, so that’s covered. And the third recipe is a salad, so no reheating required.

All of these recipes are for 2 people! So feel free to halve everything if you’re cooking for one. You’ll split the chicken 3 ways into each of the dishes.

Ingredients to Prep At The Start Of The Week

• 3 1/2 to 4 lbs chicken (I did a mix of boneless skinless breast and thighs, see below)

• 1 head of broccoli (about 1 lb) and 1 lb carrots, roasted (see below)

• 2 Persian cucumbers, sliced

• 4 scallion bunches, thinly sliced

• 1/2 red onion, sliced

Rest of Ingredients to Purchase or Find In Your Pantry

• white miso paste

• cup maple syrup

• chili crisp

• low-sodium soy sauce

• rice vinegar

• white rice

• avocado

• sesame seeds

• cilantro

• ginger

• garlic

• white mushrooms

• baby bok choy

• chicken bone broth or chicken stock

• curly kale

• sliced almonds

• lemons

• olive oil

• optional: furikake seasoning

Miso Maple Chili Crisp Chicken & Roasted Veggies

You have some options on what kind of chicken to make here. I did a mix of chicken breasts and chicken thighs because I wanted thighs for the bowl and breasts for my salad. This is a slightly more complicated way to do things, because chicken breasts bake more quickly than chicken thighs. I actually cooked mine the same length, and the breasts were a little dry, so I recommend getting out your thermometer and pulling the breasts when they reach 165 F.

If you want to make your life easier, you can opt for just breasts or just thighs. If I had to choose, I’d probably pick thighs — they came out nice and juicy, but truly, either works. I’ll include instructions for both below.

You’ll divide the chicken evenly into each recipe, so just use 1/3 of your cooked chicken per day.

You can also cook an extra cup of rice here to add to the soup later, if you’d like!

Ingredients

• 3 1/2-4 lbs chicken (I used a mix of chicken thighs and breasts, both boneless and skinless)

• 1/4 cup white miso paste

• 1/3 cup maple syrup

• 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce

• 2 tbsp chili crisp

• 1/4 cup rice vinegar

• 1 head of broccoli (about 1 lb)

• 1 lb carrots

• Olive oil

• Salt & pepper

1. Preheat oven to 425 F. In a medium bowl, whisk together miso paste, maple syrup, soy sauce, chili crisp, and rice vinegar until smooth. Reserve 1/4 cup of the marinade, and set aside.

2. Add chicken to a large bowl, and add the marinade, tossing to coat all the chicken evenly. Transfer to the fridge, and marinate while you prepare your vegetables and rice, if you’re making the bowl. It’s best if you can marinate it for 30 minutes!

3. Break your broccoli into florets, and peel, halve, and cut your carrots on the bias. Line a medium baking sheet with parchment paper, add the veggies, and toss in a good drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt.

4. Line a large baking sheet with foil, and spray with olive oil or cooking spray. Add the chicken, and spoon on most of the remaining marinade.

5. Transfer everything to the oven. If you’re making breasts, cook for about 20 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165 F. If you’re making thighs, you’ll go a little longer, closer to 25 minutes. The vegetables should be ready around 25 minutes, but they should be soft and starting to char around the edges. If you're doing a mix of breasts and thighs, pull the breasts earlier if they’re cooking faster. I like to broil the thighs at the end for about 2 minutes to brown the top. You can spoon on a little more marinade when you do this as well.

6. Let the chicken rest 5 minutes before cutting into it!

Rice Bowl (serves 2)

I like to make the rice bowl first, since the chicken and veggies are already cooked and hot. I used the chicken thighs here, and they were delicious! I actually recommend slicing the chicken first before adding it to the bowl, which I did not do but wish I had done!

You’ll use 1/3 of your cooked chicken here, whatever that looks like for you. I ended up using about 4-5 chicken thighs, which was all I had cooked (about 1 1/2 lbs).

Ingredients

• 1/3 of the cooked chicken (I used 4-5 thighs, but you could use about 2 breasts)

• 1/2 of the roasted broccoli and carrots

• 1 medium/large Persian cucumber, thinly sliced

• 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced

• Rice vinegar

• 1 cup uncooked medium white grain rice

• 1 small avocado, sliced

• Cilantro, for garnish

• Sesame seeds, for garnish

• Reserved marinade

1. Prepare your rice with your preferred method. I like to cook it in the pressure cooker for 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, add the cucumber and red onion. Pour on enough rice vinegar so the veggies are submerged, and mix together. Let sit for at least 5 minutes to marinate.

3. Divide the rice into two bowls, and top with chicken, cucumber mixture (including most of the rice vinegar), half of your roasted carrots and broccoli, and avocado. Spoon some marinade over the chicken, and serve topped with fresh cilantro and sesame seeds. Use more of the marinade as sauce, if desired!

Lemony Chopped Chicken Kale Salad (serves 2)

You can prep this recipe right away and let it sit in the fridge (kale holds up well), or you can prepare it any other day if you want to eat it fresh, since the chicken doesn't need to be reheated. I used chopped chicken breast here, but thighs also work! You can shred or chop your chicken. The lemon dressing here is simple and based off of this one.

Salad Ingredients

• 1/3 of your cooked chicken (I used 2 breasts), chopped

• 1 bunch curly kale, stems removed and finely chopped

• 1 avocado, finely diced

• 1 large Persian cucumber, thinly sliced

• 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced

• 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped

• 1/3 cup sliced almonds

• 2 scallion bunches, thinly sliced

• Handful of cilantro

• Optional: Furikake seasoning, to top

• Olive oil

Dressing Ingredients

• Juice of 2 lemons (about 4 tbsp)

• 1 tbsp rice vinegar

• 1 tbsp Dijon vinegar

• 3 tbsp olive oil

• Pinch or two of salt and pepper

1. Add your kale to a large bowl, drizzle on some olive oil, and add a pinch of salt. Massage with your hands to break down the fibers and soften the kale.

2. Add the chicken, avocado, cucumbers, red onion, almonds, scallions, and cilantro the bowl,.

3. Add dressing ingredients to a small bowl or jar, and whisk together to combine. Toss the salad in the dressing, and top with furikake seasoning.

Garlic & Ginger Chicken Bone Broth Soup

For this recipe, you’ll use your remaining 1/3 of chicken. I broke mine up with my hands into shredded chunks, but you could also shred with a fork. I used breasts here, but again, thighs would work. You’ll use the remaining half of the roasted broccoli and carrots here too.

I used bone broth for extra protein, but you could use regular chicken broth or stock here instead. If you do, start with adding 1 teaspoon soy sauce, and increase to 2, if needed.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 1/3 of your cooked chicken, shredded (I used 2 breasts)

• 1/2 of your cooked broccoli and carrots

• 1-inch knob ginger, peeled and chopped

• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

• 8 oz white mushrooms, sliced

• 2 bunches baby bok choy, broken into pieces

• 4 cups chicken bone broth (or chicken stock)

• 2 tsp soy sauce (start with 1 if using chicken stock)

• 2 scallion bunches, thinly sliced

1. Heat up oil in a medium pot on medium-low heat. Add the ginger and garlic, and cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add the mushrooms, baby bok choy, shredded chicken, cooked broccoli and carrots, chicken broth, and soy sauce. Bring to a low simmer, and cook for 5-10 minutes until mushrooms and bok choy have softened.

2. Add to bowls, and top with scallions, and spoon on some chili crisp, if desired.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT!

Last week, paid subscribers received another 30-minute budget meal! This is the other series I run on my Substack, exclusively for my paid tier! We are about to hit recipe number 100 this week, which is SO exciting! Last week’s recipe was a bright and refreshing bean salad to kick off spring.

Just a reminder that anytime you become a paid subscriber, you get access to ALL of the past recipes in the archive. You can always do a free 7-day trial as well!