Chicken Braised in Tomato Sauce
鶏肉のトマト煮
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
This is one of the main dishes we serve at preschool: bite-size pieces of chicken thigh, lightly floured and baked until golden, then simmered in a tomato sauce built on slowly cooked onion. The flour coating keeps the chicken juicy and helps the sauce cling and thicken, while a little ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and sugar round off the acidity of the tomatoes so it tastes gentle enough for young children. It reheats beautifully, and in fact the flavor settles and deepens after it has cooled once, so it is a good dish to make ahead.
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 75 gchicken thigh
- 37.5 gonion
- 45 gwater
- 60 gcanned diced tomatoes
Seasonings
- 0.1 gsalt
- 3.6 gflour
- 2.3 gvegetable oil
- 0.3 ggarlic paste (tube)Grated garlic sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh garlic for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated garlic in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- 0.5 gconsommé bouillon (granules or cube)Japanese-style Western soup stock powder or cubes, similar to chicken or vegetable bouillon. Substitute: Chicken or vegetable bouillon granules or a bouillon cube.
- 0 gsalt (for the sauce)
- 1.5 gketchup
- 1.5 gWorcestershire sauce
- 1.5 gsugar
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- garlic paste (tube) (にんにくチューブ)
- Grated garlic sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh garlic for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated garlic in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- consommé bouillon (granules or cube) (コンソメ)
- Japanese-style Western soup stock powder or cubes, similar to chicken or vegetable bouillon. Substitute: Chicken or vegetable bouillon granules or a bouillon cube.
- Worcestershire sauce (ウスターソース)
- Read the guide: Bull-Dog Worcestershire Sauce: Japan's Everyday Brown Sauce → Guide: japanese-school-lunch.com/articles/bull-dog-worcestershire-sauce/
Directions
- 1
Cut the chicken into pieces of about 20 g each. Rub in the salt to season, then coat the pieces in flour, arrange them on a baking tray and bake in a toaster oven (or an oven preheated to 200°C / 390°F) for about 10 minutes.
- 2
Cut the onion in half, then cut it into thin slices.
- 3
Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the onion and cook over low heat for about 8 minutes. Add the water, canned diced tomatoes, garlic paste and all of the remaining seasonings, and bring to a boil.
- 4
Add the baked chicken and simmer over low heat for about 10 minutes, until the sharpness of the tomato has cooked off and the sauce has thickened. (The flavors settle as it cools, so it is best to let it cool once and reheat before serving.)
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 208.5 kcal | 417 kcal | 208.5 kcal |
| Protein | 13.8 g | 27.6 g | 13.8 g |
| Fat | 13.1 g | 26.1 g | 13.1 g |
| Carbohydrates | 11.3 g | 22.5 g | 11.3 g |
| Fiber | 1.5 g | 3 g | 1.5 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.6 g | 1.2 g | 0.6 g |
| Calcium | 18 mg | 36 mg | 18 mg |
| Iron | 0.9 mg | 1.8 mg | 0.9 mg |
| Potassium | 435 mg | 870 mg | 435 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 208.5 kcal | 13.8 g | 13.1 g | 11.3 g | 1.5 g | 0.6 g | 18 mg | 0.9 mg | 435 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 417 kcal | 27.6 g | 26.1 g | 22.5 g | 3 g | 1.2 g | 36 mg | 1.8 mg | 870 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
