Poaching chicken assures moistness every time

While poached chicken may sound like bland diet food, we actually love this method as it is very forgiving and an easy path to moist, succulent chicken every time.

First, we created a flavorful poaching liquid; soy sauce adds great flavor with minimal effect on the final sodium count. Allowing the chicken to gently poach in the residual heat, elevated in a steamer basket, ensured even cooking.

We then paired the poached chicken with a bold vinaigrette and added halved cherry tomatoes to give the finished dish even more substance. Parsley can be substituted for the cilantro in the vinaigrette.

Poached Chicken Breasts With Warm Tomato-Ginger Vinaigrette

Chicken:

4 (6-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of all visible fat

½ cup low-sodium soy sauce 6 cloves garlic, smashed and

peeled Vinaigrette:

2 tablespoons olive oil,

divided use

1 small shallot, minced 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger Pinch ground cumin Pinch ground fennel seed 6 ounces cherry tomatoes,

halved

Salt and ground black pepper 1 tablespoon chopped fresh

cilantro

1 ½ teaspoons red wine

vinegar

For the chicken: Pound chicken breasts to uniform thickness as needed. Whisk 4 quarts water, soy sauce and garlic together in a Dutch oven. Arrange breasts, skinned side up, in steamer basket, making sure not to overlap them. Submerge steamer basket in water.

Heat pot over medium heat, stirring liquid occasionally to even out hot spots, until water registers 175 degrees, 15 to 20 minutes. Turn off heat, cover pot, remove from burner, and let sit until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees, 17 to 22 minutes. Transfer breasts to plate, tent with aluminum foil, and let rest while preparing vinaigrette.

For the vinaigrette: Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 10-inch skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add shallot, ginger, cumin, and fennel and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Stir in tomatoes and 1/8 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring frequently, until tomatoes have softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Off heat, stir in cilantro, vinegar, and remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Season with pepper to taste. Spoon vinaigrette evenly over each breast before serving. Makes 4 servings. Nutrition information: Each serving contains approximately 332 calories, 42 g protein, 12 g fat, 14 g carbohydrate (8 g sugar), 124 mg cholesterol, 1105 mg sodium and 2 g fiber.

Carbohydrate choices: 1.