Today, I thought that I might share with you this recipe for ‘Crispy chicken with carrot, swede and thyme mash’. I love a good root vegetable – but when we look for them at Christmas time in Australia, they are out of season and often over priced…so why not make the most of them whilst they are in season and create this delicious meal inspired by Christmas in July.
This mash combination of carrot, swede, potato and thyme has been well received by my boys. And it’s fun to let them pick out the veggies when we go to the shops. It’s interesting to see that my 4yr old and my 2 yr old know what a swede is, but it often trips up the person at the check out {not so much at the farmer’s market – where they actually grew the veggies themselves}.
A member of the cabbage family, the swede is often confused with the turnip, though they look quite different. It’s also known as yellow turnip, Swedish turnip and Russian turnip and, in America, rutabaga.
In Scotland, where it is known as ‘neeps’, swede is the traditional accompaniment to haggis on Burns night. Swede has a round shape and a purple-green skin, and the flesh is yellowy-orange, with a sweet, earthy flavour. It disintegrates fairly easily if overcooked {which makes it good for early baby food purees}.
CRISPY CHICKEN WITH CARROT, SWEDE AND THYME MASH
4 carrots
2 swede
2 potato
2 bunch broccolini
10g thyme
4 free-range chicken supremes
ground nutmeg
butter
olive oil
salt and pepper
Preheat oven to 200C. Bring a medium saucepan of salted water to the boil. Peel the carrots, swedes and potatoes then cut into 1cm chunks. Trim the broccolini. Pick the thyme leaves.
Cook the broccolini in the boiling water for 1 min, then remove with a slotted spoon and rinse under cold running water. Set aside. Cook the swede and carrot in the same boiling water for 20 mins or until tender.
Meanwhile, add 3 tsp oil and thyme to a medium ovenproof frypan and place over medium heat. Once the oil has heated, toast the thyme for 2-3 mins until fragrant, then remove and set aside.
Increase the heat to medium-high heat. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Cook the chicken for 4 mins each side or until golden then transfer pan to oven and roast for 6-8 mins until cooked through.
Remove from the oven and set aside to rest for 4 mins. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the broccolini to the frypan and cook for 1-2 mins until warmed through. Season with salt and pepper. Remove pan from heat. Drain root vegetables and return to saucepan over low heat with 30g butter, a pinch of nutmeg and the fried thyme. Mash and mix until combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve chicken with mash and broccolini.
Have you ever whipped up a recipe from my blog? I would love for you to let me know…So I don’t feel as if I am just writing all this stuff down for nothing… If you choose to whip up one of my recipes , then I would love for you to share it on social media, and don’t forget to use the hashtag #goodfoodweek.
