This Methi Chicken with Green Beans is a PCOS-friendly recipe with 428 calories, 50.5g protein, and 27.1g carbs per serving. Ready in 45 minutes. High in fiber (8.4g), which supports insulin sensitivity.
Nutrition per Serving
Methi chicken is a north Indian curry flavoured with fenugreek leaves, which taste savoury and slightly bitter, a bit like celery and maple at once. Restaurant versions add cream. This one keeps the onion and tomato masala and lets the methi carry the flavour. Each serving has 428 calories and 50g of protein, with a big portion of green beans on the side.
Grocery list:
- Boneless, skinless chicken breast
- Dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)
- Onion
- Tomatoes
- Garlic
- Fresh ginger
- Green chillies
- Avocado oil
- Ground coriander
- Ground turmeric
- Kashmiri chilli powder or mild paprika
- Cumin seeds
- Lemon
- Green beans
Nutrition notes: Figures are per serving, half the batch, worked from USDA FoodData Central values for every weighed ingredient. The dried fenugreek leaves and cumin seeds for the beans add only a few calories and are left out of the count. Kashmiri chilli is counted as paprika.
Keeps: The chicken keeps 3 days in the fridge and freezes for up to 2 months. The green beans are best eaten the day they are cooked but keep 2 days.
Ingredients
Instructions
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Toss the chicken with the lemon juice, half the salt and half the turmeric. Leave it while you prepare the masala.Heat 2 teaspoons of the oil in a heavy pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 8 minutes, until golden.Add the garlic, ginger and chillies and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the coriander, Kashmiri chilli and the rest of the turmeric and salt for 30 seconds.Add the tomatoes and cook for 5 to 6 minutes, pressing them with the spoon, until they melt into a thick masala.Add the chicken and stir to coat. Pour in 80ml of water, cover and simmer on low for 10 to 12 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Cut the largest piece to check.Rub the dried fenugreek leaves between your palms over the pan to crush them. Stir and simmer uncovered for 2 minutes more.While the chicken simmers, heat the last teaspoon of oil in a second pan. Add the cumin seeds, then the green beans and a splash of water. Cover and cook for 5 minutes, then uncover and stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes until just tender with a few brown spots.Serve the methi chicken with the green beans on the side.
Why this works for PCOS
This is a high-protein, low-starch dinner: 50g of protein and 27g of carbs per serving, with the carbs coming from onion, tomato and green beans rather than rice or bread. Meals like this tend to keep blood sugar steadier, which is helpful if you are managing insulin resistance.
The ingredients doing the work
- Chicken breast: lean protein that soaks up the masala. Thighs work too and stay juicier, with a little more fat.
- Dried fenugreek leaves: the whole flavour of the dish comes from 4g of leaves. Find kasuri methi in Indian grocers or online. It keeps for months in a jar.
- Green beans: 150g per serving adds fibre and crunch so the plate does not need rice.
About fenugreek
You may have read about fenugreek seed supplements and blood sugar. This recipe uses a small amount of the dried leaves for flavour, not a supplement dose, so treat it as a tasty dinner, not a treatment.
How this fits a PCOS week
One good recipe is easy. A whole week that skips the foods you avoid is the hard part. PCOS Meal Planner builds your week around the food you actually cook, keeps out what you do not eat, and turns it into one shopping list.
Why this Methi Chicken with Green Beans works for PCOS
With 50.5g of protein per serving (about 47% of calories), this Methi Chicken with Green Beans sits at the top end of the 25-35g per-meal range that the 2023 International PCOS Guideline recommends for managing insulin resistance and supporting lean mass. Higher-protein meals also blunt the glucose response when carbohydrates are included, which matters for women with PCOS because chronic insulin elevation drives androgen excess and irregular cycles.
The 27.1g of carbohydrates here come paired with 8.4g of fibre, which slows glucose absorption and produces a flatter post-meal blood sugar curve. Fibre is one of the most under-rated tools for PCOS: it feeds gut bacteria that produce short-chain fatty acids linked to improved insulin sensitivity, and it modestly lowers circulating androgens by binding bile acids in the gut.
Evening meals affect overnight insulin and morning blood sugar more than most women realise. Keeping dinner protein-forward and finishing eating at least 2-3 hours before bed gives your body time to clear glucose before the overnight fast, which improves morning fasting insulin readings.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, this Methi Chicken with Green Beans recipe is designed to be PCOS-friendly. At 428 calories per serving with 50.5g of protein, it supports balanced blood sugar and hormonal health. It also provides 8.4g of fiber, which helps with insulin sensitivity.
This recipe takes about 45 minutes total. Prep time is 15 minutes and cook time is 30 minutes. It makes 2 servings, so you can meal prep for multiple days.
Per serving: 428 calories, 50.5g protein (47%), 27.1g carbs, 14g fat. Plus 8.4g fiber. PCOS meal plans typically aim for 30% protein, 35% fat, 35% carbs to support insulin sensitivity.
Yes, this recipe works well as a PCOS-friendly Dinner. At 428 calories, it fits within typical PCOS meal plan targets for Dinner. Pair it with other PCOS-friendly foods throughout the day for balanced nutrition.
This recipe can be part of a structured PCOS meal plan. It makes 2 servings, making it great for meal prep. For a complete weekly plan tailored to your PCOS type, take our free 60-second quiz at pcosmealplanner.com/pcos-quiz to get a personalized 7-day meal plan.
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