Salad days with a cooked chook
Tired of being responsible for dinner every night? If so, you’re not alone – even people who like cooking get worn out by the nightly grind.
When this happens to me, I turn to one of the greatest inventions of all time – the ready-cooked rotisserie chicken. There’s no shame in buying one of these burnished beauties, but you do have to have a few tricks up your sleeve if you want to turn one into more than a one-night wonder.
These two recipes have been designed to each use half a chicken, with just enough other ingredients to let you whip through the express checkout.
If you’re an organised person you can, of course, substitute an equivalent amount of home-cooked chicken.
Chicken salad with feta, greens and vegetable crisps Serves 3-4 Preparation time: 20 minutes Cooking time: nil
The only difficult thing about this salad is stopping waiting bystanders from eating the components before you’ve finished making it.
I’m addicted to the ‘‘garden medley’’ crisps made by Nelson’s Proper Crisps – if you also have this problem it might be an idea to buy two packets when making this. Don’t add the crisps until just before serving or they will go a little soggy.
For the dressing:
1 small clove garlic, crushed to a paste with 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
1⁄2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice 3-4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
For the salad:
Half a cold rotisserie chicken (split it down the middle)
150g feta, crumbled
4 spring onions, finely chopped
4 large handfuls baby salad greens
100g bag vegetable crisps
Make the dressing first: put all the ingredients in a small bowl or jar and whisk or shake until emulsified. Taste – it should be slightly sharp – and set aside.
For the salad, shred the chicken into a bowl, making sure to get every last shred of meat. Use your judgment about including the skin – I prefer to omit any fatty bits.
Add the feta, spring onions and most of the dressing and toss gently. Add the salad leaves and toss again, then pile on to a serving platter.
Drizzle a little remaining dressing over the top and season well with salt and pepper. Scatter over the crisps and serve immediately.
Chicken and rice noodles with coriander and peanuts Serves 3-4 Preparation time: 20 minutes Cooking time: 5 minutes
Juicy chicken plus salty peanuts, cold rice noodles and a punchy dressing equals quick dinner heaven.
For the dressing:
1 clove garlic
3cm piece fresh ginger, finely grated 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh red chili 1 packed tablespoon brown sugar
1⁄4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice 3 tablespoons fish sauce 1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 tablespoon sesame oil
For the salad:
250g rice vermicelli noodles
Half a cold rotisserie chicken
4 spring onions, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and shredded
1 bunch coriander, leaves picked and stems finely chopped
1 1⁄4 cup roasted salted peanuts
Make the dressing first. Put all the ingredients into a small bowl or jar and whisk or shake together until combined. Taste and adjust as necessary – it should be quite punchy.
Cook the rice vermicelli according to packet directions (drop the noodles into boiling water and cook for about five minutes, until they are opaque and tender). Drain well and rinse under cold running water, then tip into a bowl. Add most of the dressing and toss well.
Shred the rotisserie chicken into the bowl, making sure to get every last shred of meat.
Add the spring onions and carrot, and most of the coriander and peanuts. Toss well, then drizzle the remaining dressing on top.
Scatter over the remaining coriander and peanuts and serve.