Before IBS/GERD, one of my favorite dishes was my Peanut Chicken with Lo Mein (recipe here). Really, anything involving peanut butter was high up on my list of favorites. It’s much more difficult to work with peanut butter now, but definitely not impossible! What’s nice about peanut butter is it packs a lot of flavor in a fairly small quantity, so you don’t need a ton to get the flavor in a recipe.
Sometime soon I’m sure I will venture into figuring out an IBS/GERD friendly version of the Peanut Chicken with Lo Mein, but for now I opted for a peanut chicken salad. Since it’s summer, chicken salad is a great versatile dish to have on hand. You can do so much with it! Eat it on some gluten free bread as a sandwich, on top of some gluten free crackers, over some baby spinach (no more than 38g at a time for IBS/GERD), inside some shelled out cucumbers like the recipe here, or inside some snow pea pods like the recipe here.
This recipe came together fairly easily (my favorite kind of recipes!). I had to play around a bit with the quantity of soy sauce (and also between whether to use that or oyster sauce), but that was about it. The result is a chicken salad with a smooth and creamy, slightly salty and slightly sweet peanut buttery dressing that is safe for Low FODMAP eaters, those with IBS and/or GERD/Acid Reflux/Heartburn, those with lactose intolerance, those who are gluten free and those who love peanut butter!
This also developed within me a newfound love of using (non-dairy) yogurt in cooking. I chose vanilla for this recipe to give a touch of sweetness, but plain yogurt works so well in cooking too, providing a tang like sour cream without all the fat (all the non dairy sour creams I have found are much higher in fat than the non dairy plain yogurts). It’s a great choice for getting a creamy texture without all of the problematic ingredients. Hooray for yogurt!
Peanut Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 6 oz cooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts (chopped) - I like to use rotisserie chicken for some added flavor
- 1 Tbsp. peanut butter (use the creamy kind)
- 4 oz non-dairy vanilla flavored yogurt (I use Almond Dream brand, which only has 3g of fat per 6oz serving and no saturated fat. For IBS and GERD, whatever brand you use, watch the fat content and try to find one very close in fat content to the Almond Dream brand) *Note: If you're not lactose intolerant, don't have IBS or GERD, feel free to use whatever brand/fat content vanilla yogurt you want)
- 3/4 tsp. soy sauce (this helps with color and adds salt to the mix)
- 1 medium-sized carrot (50g, finely chopped)
- 1/2 tsp. chives (chopped) - plus more for garnish, if desired
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the peanut butter, yogurt and soy sauce until peanut butter is completely mixed in.
- Add in the chopped chicken, carrots, snow peas and 1/2 tsp. chives and mix together until thoroughly combined.
- That's it! Super easy. Garnish with some additional chives for garnish, if desired. Just be careful, as a little chive goes a long way (and see below notes regarding chives for IBS/GERD sufferers). *See below notes section for serving ideas*
Notes
- The maximum weight of your serving of chicken salad serving should be ~78g.
- Peanut butter can be problematic for GERD/Reflux if overused (due to the fat content), but with the quantity in this recipe (and the amount actually consumed in a serving), it should be just fine for most (hopefully all) heartburn, acid reflux and/or GERD sufferers. With that said, be careful to watch the fat content in your other foods on days you eat this. Try to avoid oils and fats as much as possible in your other meals on day(s) you eat this. Also, you could use reduced fat peanut butter if you have a more severe reaction to the fat levels in peanut butter.
- For some, raw veggies (or at least too many of them) cause symptoms. If you fall into this category, steam the carrots before chopping and using in the chicken mixture. You'll still get great flavor (in fact, you might even get better flavor from the cooked veggies), it just won't be crunchy.
- For some with GERD/Reflux, chives can be problematic. Just be careful with how many you use. If you know chives aggravate your symptoms, maybe leave them out of the salad and just use a few small pieces on top for garnish/flavor.
- On some gluten free bread as a sandwich, on top of some gluten free crackers
- Over some fresh baby spinach (max of 38g for IBS/GERD sufferers)
- Inside some shelled out cucumbers like the recipe here
- Inside some snow pea pods like the recipe here
*The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.*
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