Category: chicken

Categories
cheese chicken tortilla

chicken tortilla melt

chicken tortilla melt

I could take EssexEating’s taunting Tweets on the subject no more. I needed a crispy, cheesy tortilla fix on the quick.

A big pile of cheesy chips like this reminds me of my student days. I would microwave for an instant result, but when I have time I like to bake this so the tortillas have a hollow, crisp edge. I’ve made this one have the pretence of a real meal by adding a protein and a veg but let’s not kid ourselves: this falls squarely in the ‘treat’ category. Ticks loads of feel-good boxes though.

Chicken tortilla melt:

2 chicken breasts, chopped very small

1 pepper, diced

½ teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon coriander

A large bag of tortilla chips, whichever flavour you like

Piles of cheddar cheese

  1. Get your oven on as hot as it will go. Get a frying pan on the hob to pretty hot.
  2. Toss the pepper and chicken in the spices with a pinch of salt and pepper and fry in a little oil. Once the chicken has coloured all over remove to one side. The chicken’s going in the oven too so it can be a tiny bit under.
  3. Scatter a baking tray with tortilla chips and top with cheese. Add a layer of chicken and peppers, then repeat the layering until you’ve used everything up. Try and save some cheese for later.
  4. Place in the oven and bake for 3 – 5 minutes until the cheese has melted. Out of the oven top with the remaining cheese (the combination of melted cheese and barely warm cheese is really interesting). Grind over some black pepper and serve with sour cream, guacamole and salsa.
Categories
chicken coriander cumin curry onion potatoes spinach yoghurt

indian pot roast chicken

This meal represent a confluence of good fortune: I receive a job-lot of Total Greek Yoghurt one minute and a copy of Leon Naturally Fast Food the next. I’ve never been so instantly bowled over by a cookbook, it’s extremely wedded to the way I cook and makes perfect sense. It’s beautifully presented in a scrapbook style, and packed with a very real voice. It’s utterly charming.

I was drawn to the pot-roasts, and had a curryish state of mind going in. So this seemed like the one to use as a starting point. I’ve added a few bits and pieces.

It was very satisfying, but personally I underseasoned it. It will be utterly delicious the next time.

Indian chicken pot roast (serves 4):

4 chicken quarters

300ml 0% Total Greek yoghurt

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon garam masala

2 potatoes, sliced into thick discs

1 lemon, sliced into thick discs

1 onion, sliced into rings

1 large bag of spinach

  1. Brine the chicken in enough water to cover with 8% salt for 6 hours. Afterwards, rinse under a cold tap and pat dry.
  2. Mix the yoghurt and spices together with a pinch of salt and pepper. Marinate the chicken in this lovely pink mix overnight.
  3. Preheat the oven to 170°C. Layer the potatoes in the bottom of a large lidded casserole dish. Lay the onions on this, then the lemon slices. Season well, then plop the chicken on top of this with any leftover marinade.
  4. Bake for 1½ to 2 hours, until the chicken is done. Get the chicken out carefully with tongs, tip the spinach in and pop the chicken back on top. Cook for another 10 minutes, until the spinach has wilted and is tender.
Categories
chicken coconut courgettes peppers rice

thai chicken curry with kung po rice

Having both rice and curry paste in the cupboard to use up, I played with the idea of Thai green curry to create a lifting and tasty midweek meal. Using some Tilda Kung Po stir fry rice and other bits and bobs lying around, I lucked on to something pretty nice.

Thai chicken curry with Kung Po rice:

2 chicken legs

Dark soy sauce

1 courgette, sliced

1 red pepper, sliced

1 packet Kung Po stir fry rice

For the sauce:

1 teaspoon Thai green paste

1 can coconut milk

500ml chicken stock

Fish sauce to taste

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C.
  2. Shake some soy sauce over the chicken legs and rub all over. Pop in the oven for 40 mins until crisp and cooked through. Shred the meat off the bone with two forks.
  3. Put the paste in a pan and sizzle for a minute, then add the remaining sauce ingredients and simmer to reduce.
  4. In a separate pan fry the courgette and pepper in a little oil until tender, then add the chicken meat. Add the rice and cook for a further minute. Combine with the sauce and serve.
Categories
chicken courgettes curry food mushroom nam pla

thai green curry

There are times when only the fire, sweetness and creamy sour hit of a Thai curry will do. I’d not cooked one before so I chickened out slightly and bought a ready-made paste. It was very tasty but a leeetle on the spicy side – I’ll use a bit less next time.

I agree that chestnut mushrooms and courgettes are inauthentic but the earthiness and body they offer really match up.

Thai green curry:

2 chicken breasts, diced

1 courgette, sliced

250g chestnut mushrooms, sliced

2 teaspoons Thai green curry paste (I used Barts)

Half a teaspoon green peppercorns

400ml coconut milk

200ml chicken stock

4 kaffir lime leaves, shredded

Few splashes of nam pla

Bunch of coriander

  1. Fry the chicken in a little oil until coloured all over and remove to one side. Fry the courgette and mushroom in the same pan until they start to turn tender. Again, put to one side.
  2. Fry the paste for a minute to release the oils, then add the pepper corns. Add the milk and stock and bring to a boil. Pop the chicken and veg back in the pan and continue to simmer for about ten minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has reduced to a creamy consistency.
  3. Add the lime leaves and nam pla to taste, and serve with inauthentic but really tasty basmati rice. Garnish with torn coriander.
Exit mobile version