Japanese Chicken-Scallion Rice Bowl

Here's the quintessence of Japanese home cooking: an aromatic, protein-rich broth served over rice. Admittedly, Japanese cooking leans heavily on sugar - for a less traditional taste, you could reduce or even omit the sugar.

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READER'S COMMENT:

"Love this dish. I didn't let the eggs sit long enough so they fell apart and it wasn't pretty. Remember low-sodium! I used reduced broth but not soy sauce and it was too much salt for me. I put a touch more wine in because I love the...
INGREDIENTS 

• 1 1/2 cups instant brown rice
• 1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon mirin, (see Ingredient note)
• 2 large egg whites
• 1 large egg
• 8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 6 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced

Preparation

1. Prepare instant brown rice according to package directions.
2. Pour broth into a heavy medium saucepan, along with sugar, soy sauce and mirin. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low.
3. Stir egg whites and whole egg in a small bowl until just mixed. Add chicken to the simmering broth. Gently pour in the egg mixture, without stirring. Sprinkle scallions on top. When the egg starts to firm up, after about 3 minutes, stir it with chopsticks or a knife. (The chicken will be cooked by now.) Divide the rice among 4 deep soup bowls and top with the chicken mixture.

Tips & Notes

• Ingredient Note: Mirin is a low-alcohol rice wine essential to Japanese cooking. Look for it in your supermarket with the Asian or gourmet ingredients. An equal portion of sherry or white wine with a pinch of sugar may be substituted for mirin.

Nutrition

Per serving:262 calories; 3 g fat (1 g sat, 1 g mono); 87 mg cholesterol; 47 g carbohydrates; 22 g protein; 3 g fiber; 387 mg sodium; 370 mg potassium.

3 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 2 1/2 starch, 1/2 vegetable, 2 1/2 very lean meat