RECIPE OF THE WEEK

Chicken drumsticks with fresh peas and pancetta from La Goccia at Petersham Nurseries, Covent Garden

Notes

Serves two

Ingredients

6 organic chicken drumsticks 800g fresh peas 50g red onion 150g potato 100g pancetta 300ml vegetable stock 60ml extra virgin olive oil 50ml white wine 5g mint 5g thyme Salt and pepper to taste

Method

▶ On a tray, marinate the chicken drumsticks with half of the extra virgin olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper.

▶ Remove all the peas from the pods (you can save the pods for the vegetable stock to help elevate the pea flavour). Place the shelled peas into a medium-sized saucepan and cover with cold water. Add a pinch of salt and bring it to boil. Once the water has boiled, remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool.

▶ Clean the onion and roughly chop. In another medium-sized saucepan, sweat the onion with the other half of the extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt on a medium heat.

▶ As the onion is gently sweating, peel the potatoes and cut them into small cubes, about 5mm each side. Add to the onions before they start to caramelise.

▶ Continue to cook the onion and potato until they begin to caramelise. Don’t worry if the potato starts to stick to the bottom of the pan.

▶ When the onion and potatoes are golden in colour, add 150g of the vegetable stock and let it deglaze. Season with some salt and cook for a further six to seven minutes on a medium heat. Next, drain and add the nearly done peas, then cook all together for another five minutes before stirring through the chopped mint.

▶ Take a ladle of the peas, potato and mint mix and blend with a hand blender in a separate bowl.

▶ Add the blended mixture back into the rest of the mix and set to one side.

▶ Sear the marinated drumsticks in a hot pan. When they’re golden, pour in the white wine and, after that has evaporated, add the vegetable stock. Cover with a lid and cook for 20 minutes.

▶ While the chicken is cooking, fry the pancetta without any oil.

▶ Combine everything together—the cooked chicken, potato and pea mix and the pancetta —before cooking one final time, on a low heat, for another 10 minutes.

▶ Check the seasoning and serve with some extra mint.

The courtyard at La Goccia is open for lunch and dinner from April 12 (020–7305 7676; www.lagoccia.co.uk)