Family Friendly Chicken Paella
Oh dear! I'm told that last week's decadent 'Chocolate Caramel Croissant' recipe caused chaos with pre-chag diet plans, as was evident when the store completely sold out of Cadbury's Chocolate Caramel Eggs, within 24 hours of me sending out my weekly newsletter. (I am determined to make amends with a far more figure friendly letter this week, and therefore considerately won't tell you, that we're expecting more stock of these decadent eggs to be delivered within days.) Instead, in my efforts to keep you on the straight and hopefully narrow, I'm sharing a family favorite with you today, that I'm sure will be a huge hit with even the fussiest diners. It conveniently makes use of ready-made roast chicken, or Friday night leftovers, feeds a crowd, and freezes perfectly. Am I redeemed with this week's more responsible recipe? And does this give me license to share the secret to Chocolate Rolo Filled Cupcakes in the coming weeks?
Ingredients:
1 ready-roasted chicken, skin removed and cubed
1 finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
1 small green or yellow pepper, seeds removed and cubed
1 small red pepper, seeds removed and cubed
1 container white mushrooms, sliced
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 sprig chopped rosemary
1/4 teaspoon chilli flakes
Salt and coarse black pepper
2 cups uncooked Basmati rice
(4 heaped teaspoons powder to water)4 cups chicken stock
Method: 1: Fry onions, garlic, peppers,mushrooms, herbs and spices in a splash of canola oil for 5 minutes, then add 2 cups of raw rice, and fry a further 5 minutes. 2: Add cubed chicken and stock, pour mixture into a casserole dish and bake covered at 180 C for 45 minutes. 3: Check seasoning and stir through chopped parsley before serving. Cook's Notes: Meatland sell the ULTIMATE roast chicken freshly made every Thursday. These sell out fast so it's best to order ahead. Recipe may be adapted to use zucchini in place of peppers if preferred. If serving vegetarians, you can always split the quantities in half, and cook half the mixture without chicken cubes. Recipe serves 6 - 8.
