Tart London: How to make green spiced chicken with fresh peas, avocado and pea shoots
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It is such a great time for greedy foodies like us in London right now.
There is a real culinary buzz wherever you look, with ever more attention paid to fresh produce in the independently run local restaurants, delis and cafés popping up around town. The abundance of locally sourced produce at farmers’ markets and greengrocers is wonderful. It certainly was not the case when we were young. We remember dire salads of boiled eggs and iceberg lettuce, sour vinegar dressings and tasteless tomatoes.
We can now get endless, delicious variations of salads with contrasting crunchy textures from nuts and seeds — and our favourite, fennel-spiced breadcrumbs — and flavours brought together harmoniously with zingy dressings, tart crumbled cheese and herby yoghurts. Yotam Ottolenghi really opened our eyes to the possibilities of the humble salad, showing how it could celebrate the freshest ingredients with beautiful presentation and bold flavours.
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This summer we have been asked by The Mount Street Deli in Mayfair to come up with two salad recipes. One is from our cookbook: a smoky saffron, tomato and labneh dish with crisped chickpeas that will be served from 16 August. But first there is this summery, fresh chicken salad, which is currently on at the deli. We wanted to create something soothing and punchy at the same time that could be put together in advance without losing freshness. This particular dressing only improves with a few hours of marinating, which is perfect for a ready-to-go deli salad. The mixture of herbs, spices, lime, yoghurt and feta has that perfect vibrant tang for a light summer meal.
Green spiced chicken with fresh peas, avocado and pea shoots (serves 3-4)
Ingredients
- 3 organic chicken breasts
- 3 bay leaves
- For the yoghurt dressing
- 2 tsp coriander seeds
- 2 tsp cumin seeds
- 2 tbsp Greek yoghurt
- Zest and juice of 2 limes
- 90g feta
- Medium bunch of coriander
- Medium bunch of mint
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1 green chilli
- 1 tsp honey
For the salad
- 2 handfuls of fresh podded peas
- 1 avocado, peeled and destoned
- 1 baby fennel, very finely sliced
- 1 shallot, very finely sliced
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 handfuls pea shoots
- 1 tbsp pine nuts
- 1 tbsp flaked almonds
- For the garnish
- 1 red chilli, seeded and
- finely chopped
- Big pinch of mint leaves
- Big pinch of coriander leaves
- Handful of edible flowers
Method
Bring one litre of water to the boil with the bay leaves in a large, shallow pan. Add the chicken breasts, season and simmer over medium heat for five minutes. Remove from the heat and leave the meat to cool in the liquid for up to an hour.
Make the dressing. Dry fry the coriander and cumin seeds over a medium heat for about five minutes until fragrant. Grind to a coarse powder then blitz with the rest of the dressing ingredients in a blender. Season to taste. Shred the chicken and then mix into the yoghurt dressing. Steam the peas for one or two minutes.
Cut the avocado flesh into one cm cubes and combine with the fennel, shallots and peas. Squeeze over the lemon juice and olive oil, season and then toss in the pea shoots. Dry fry first the pine nuts, then flaked almonds until golden. To serve, spoon a generous portion of chicken on to the plate, followed by a large handful of salad. Sprinkle with the nuts, then top with a scattering of chilli, herbs and edible flowers.