A trip down memory lane this evening with one of our head chef Patrick’s favourite childhood recipes. Nutritious, chewy brown rice is the perfect bed for crispy-skinned roast chicken in a flavour-packed sauce. Nostalgic and modern, all at the same time!
The quantities provided above are averages only.
Boxes and ingredients are packed in facilities that handles Peanut, Nuts, Sesame, Fish, Crustaceans, Milk, Egg, Mustard, Celery, Soya, Gluten and Sulphites. Due to the war in Ukraine, it has been necessary to substitute sunflower oil with rapeseed oil in some products without a label change. The FSA have advised that allergic reactions to rapeseed oil are rare.
150
Brown Basmati Rice
2
British Chicken Breasts
5
Thyme
1
Garlic Clove
1
Chestnut Mushrooms
½
Chicken Stock Pot
1
Dijon Mustard
(Contains Sulphites, Mustard)
½
Creme Fraiche
(Contains Milk)
200
Water
Preheat your oven to 200°C. Rinse the rice in a sieve under running water for 30 seconds then pop it in your pan of boiling water. Cook for 25 mins. TIP: Make sure the water is rapidly boiling or else the cooking time will be longer.
Pat the chicken breasts with kitchen paper to dry the skin and rub each with a little olive oil and season with salt and black pepper. Heat a drizzle of oil in a frying pan on medium-high heat. Once really hot, add the chicken, skin-side down. Cook for 2-3 mins. Transfer the chicken to a baking tray, skin-side up, and put it on the top shelf of your oven. Cook for 20 mins. Don't wash the frying pan - we'll use it again later.
Meanwhile, pick the thyme leaves from their stalks (discard the stalks). TIP: You can do this quickly if you pinch the tip of the thyme stalks with one hand and run finger and thumb of the other hand downwards to strip off the leaves. Peel and grate the garlic (or use a garlic press). Roughly chop the chestnut mushrooms.
Heat a glug of olive oil in the (now empty) frying pan on medium heat. Once hot, add the thyme leaves and garlic. Cook for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms. Cook until they have softened, 5 mins. TIP: If you have some white wine or dry sherry open, pour in a good glug and let it bubble off.
Add the chicken stock pot with the water (amount specified in the ingredient list) and stir until the stock pot has dissolved. Reduce the mixture by a third, then turn off the heat. Wait 1 minute for the sauce to cool, then stir through the Dijon mustard and crème fraîche. TIP: Waiting for the sauce to cool a little before adding the crème fraîche ensures it won't split.
Once cooked, cut the chicken at an angle into five slices and pop them in the Dijon mushroom sauce to soak up the flavours for 5 mins. TIP: The chicken is cooked when it is no longer pink in the middle. Taste and season to your liking. Serve the chicken on a plate next to the wholesome brown rice, and cover with the Dijon-mushroom sauce. Enjoy!