Chicken and Tomato Supper

I'm not keen on the name of this dish - to me it sounds a little bit ' 70s, a little bit Margot Ledbetter or Hyacinth Bucket - but that's the name it has in my recipe book (The Dairy Book of Home Cookery).

At home I call it 'That chicken, vegetable and tomato thing' and then I'm asked: 'The thing with the breadcrumbs on?' and I say 'Yes, that's the one'.

It's a very quick and easy meal to make, and you can vary the flavours and vegetables. The original recipe used zucchini, but I only add that (chopped and added with the capsicum) if I happen to have some around. Also the original didn't include the 'bed' of vegetables, but I think they make the whole thing taste really good.

Gently fry the onion in some oil, chop up the capsicum and then add that. Cook until quite soft, then push to one side, turn up the heat, add some more oil and put in the diced chicken. Let it sizzle for a while, then turn it over until it's mostly sealed.

I cut the chicken up quite small because then the whole thing can be ready quickly and the chicken is less likely to get dry through over-cooking.

Add a jar of passata, some salt, pepper and a teaspoon of sugar. Also add some herbs like oregano, basil and parsley.

Simmer for 10 mins so that the chicken is cooked through (don't overcook). While this is happening, lightly steam some broccoli (steamed green beans work well too).

Spread the broccoli in a large baking dish and pour the chicken/tomato mixture over it. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and grated cheese and put into a hot oven for 10 minutes to crisp the crumbs and melt the cheese.

Eat on its own with bread, or to make it go further, serve with rice.

Ingredients:
2 chicken breast fillets, cubed
1 onion, chopped
1 red capsicum, chopped
1 jar passata (around 700 ml)
dried oregano, a couple of tbsp
small handful of fresh basil, or some dried if not available
small handful of fresh parsley if you've got some, otherwise don't bother
salt, pepper, sugar
large head of broccoli, cut into smallish florets
fresh breadcrumbs (approx 1 cup)
grated cheese (approx half a cup)

Chicken Myers

Chicken Myers is a very tasty meal that's reasonably quick to make and includes lots of vegetables. All you have to do is cook some rice or potatoes to go with it.

I'm not quite sure what the 'Myers' means - we've been making this in our family for a long time, and originally the recipe came from 'The Dairy Book of Home Cookery' although I think we've all made changes along the way so all our versions are a little different.

Lightly steam some carrots and broccoli, and spread them in the bottom of a large baking dish.

Put the tin of soup in a bowl or large jug and stir in enough milk to make a thickish sauce. Add some seasoning (not salt as the soup is usually salty enough) - I use pepper and a generous amount of wholegrain mustard.

Cut chicken breast fillets into thin slices horizontally and lay them in a single layer over the vegetables.

Cover the chicken with the soup/sauce and then top with grated cheese.

Cook at 190 C for 30 - 40 mins until top is golden and the chicken is tender. (Be careful not to cook for too long or the chicken will be dry.)

Serve with rice or potatoes - it serves 4 people quite generously - not bad for two chicken breast fillets!

Ingredients:

2 chicken breast fillets

4 carrots, peeled and sliced

1 head of broccoli , divided into florets

1 tin of condensed 'cream of...' soup - I use celery, chicken or asparagus

milk, pepper, wholegrain mustard

grated cheddar

Chicken Fillets with Soy Glaze

This chicken is very simple and tasty, and goes really well with jasmine rice and steamed vegetables (preferably broccoli or green beans - my peas and corn aren't particularly sophisticated!) Despite having a fair amount of orange juice in the sauce, it doesn't really taste orangey, just very tasty.

Slice chicken breasts horizontally and lay them in a baking dish. Pour over the marinade (a mixture of soy sauce, sugar, garlic, pepper, orange juice and vinegar - see below), cover and put in fridge until you're ready to cook.

Cook in oven at 180 C for half an hour until chicken is cooked - careful not to overcook or it will be dry. Serve with rice and veg, and with sauce spooned over (it is quite thin, so I reduce it a little in a pan first.)

Ingredients:
2 chicken breast fillets, halved horizontally
4 tbsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp soft brown sugar
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar (I use apple cider vinegar)
100 ml orange juice (one orange is normally enough for this)
pepper

Ritzy Chicken Nuggets

Before cooking...

...and after cooking.

This is a recipe from 'Feast' that I've wanted to try for a while, but in the book it says to fry the nuggets, which put me off a bit (not for health reasons - more because of mess and smell!)

But I've discovered you can cook them in the oven instead, so that's what I did. You soak cut-up chicken breast in buttermilk overnight, to make the meat tender, then dip them in crumbed Ritz (or similar) crackers, then cook them.

They really were very tender - no chewiness at all, and the outside was slightly crunchy, although not as strongly flavoured as I would have expected. Nice dipped in sauce though. Healthier than bought nuggets, and good for the kiddies!