chicken complements

Chicken gets a bad rap sometimes – especially with the (justifiable) concerns over battery chickens. But free range and/or organic chicken is guilt free (depending on who you talk to). The problem is, it can be quite bland, unless you’re roasting a whole chicken, which is like the holy grail of chicken.

Chicken breast is very healthy, low in fat and calories, and quite filling. The problems lie in the ingredients cooks use to entice their patrons, like butter, cheese and oil.

Finding tasty, healthy ingredients is easier than you think: sun-dried tomatoes and dried wild mushrooms taste great rolled into a flattened chicken breast. Herbs make the task simple: chopped parsley and garlic are my favourites, but rosemary, thyme and others work fantastically well too.

In my opinion, something needs to ooze out of the chicken to make it exciting. Use a reduced-fat cheese like mozzarella.

Skinless, boneless chicken thighs stuffed with mushrooms, garlic, mozzarella and parsley
(serves 2)

4 chicken thighs, skinned and deboned
1 125g ball of reduced-fat mozzarella, sliced into eight thin slices
large handful of parsley, chopped
125 g dried mushrooms
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped finely
salt and freshly ground black pepper
cocktail sticks

Heat the oven to 200 C.

Pour half of a pint of freshly boiled water into a small bowl over the dried mushrooms. Allow to soak for about five minutes.

Use a meat tenderiser to pound the chicken thighs to a thickness of 1cm. Season with salt and pepper.

Remove the mushrooms and pat dry with a paper towel.

Add the mozzarella, mushrooms, parsley and garlic to the top of the chicken. Roll up the chicke and secure with two cocktail sticks for each piece. Season again with black pepper.

Cook for 30-35 minutes and ensure the chicken is fully-cooked before serving.

Serve with green vegetables, such as curly kale, broccoli or green beans.