Serves 4
(A modernised version of Delia’s Chicken Breast with mushrooms, bacon & Masala Sauce)
Ingredients
4 Skinless Chicken Breasts
1 77g packet diced pancetta
10g Dried wild or porcini mushrooms
175g chestnut Mushrooms peeled & finely chopped
25g butter
1 medium onion (finely chopped)
1 cloves of garlic – crushed
1 large teaspoon chopped sage
A good grating of Nutmeg
2 packets of Parma Ham slices
Salt and pepper to season
For the sauce
150 ml Masala
1 teaspoon olive oil
Reserved pancetta
1 shallot finely chopped
3 chestnut mushrooms finely chopped
2 heaped teaspoons of Gluten Free plain flour
Soaking liquid from the dried mushrooms
Salt and pepper to season
Method
Start by soaking the dried mushrooms in a jug with 150ml of boiling water. Soak for 20 minutes and then squeeze all the juices out of the mushrooms and put the mushrooms and liquid to the side
Finely Chop the onions. Finely chop the pancetta. Melt the butter in a frying pan and add half of the pancetta and fry until golden and crisp. Remove to a plate with a slotted spoon and then add the chopped onions to the pan and fry for 5 minutes or until soft
Whilst the onions are softening, chop up the dried mushrooms, sage chestnut mushrooms, crush the garlic and add to the pan with the nutmeg and cooked pancetta – coating everything in oil. You want to get a thick paste from the ingredients so cook on a medium heat until the mushrooms juices start to run, then put onto a low heat and cook. This process will take approximately 30 minutes. You now need to let the paste cool down. (Transfer to a bowl and put it in a fridge for an hour)
When you are ready to start on the assembly of the dish, I blitz the paste in a blender – more for texture than any other reason. At this point you can add a little good quality truffle oil to the mix to give it an extra flavour boost.
Once the paste is cooked and transferred to the bowl to cool, now’s the time to start working on the Masala sauce. Heat the oil in the pan that you used for the paste and add the shallot and reserved pancetta and gently fry for 5 minutes, then add the sliced mushrooms and chopped sage and stir over the heat for about a minute. Now stir in the flour to soak up the juices and gradually add the juice from the dried mushrooms, followed by the masala. Season to taste. Stir until it thickens and bubbles; at this point you can add a little more masala if the sauce is too thick. Turn the heat down and let it simmer gently for 20 minutes, then set aside until you are ready to re-heat and serve.
Now to work on the chicken breasts. The end result you are looking for is a flat fillet that you will be able to roll around the paste like a Swiss Roll. Place the fillet smooth side down and bear the small fillet away but do not separate. Now Make a cut away from the small fillet to cut the main fillet into a butterfly.
Get four square of foil and slightly oil them. Lay three slices of Parma ham onto each square. Lay the chicken on a chopping board and spread the paste evenly over the breast, then roll up like a Swiss roll. Place the chicken roll onto the Parma ham and then wrap the ham around the chicken. Now wrap the chicken roll in foil, tucking in the ends to make a sealed parcel. Refrigerate for at least an hour to firm up and hold the shape.
To cook the chicken, pre heat the oven to 450f / 230c/ Fan 200c. Place the parcels onto a baking tray and cook for 20 minutes.
Once cooked, remove from the oven to rest for 10 minutes and re-heat the sauce. If the sauce is too thick, use the sauce that will be trapped in the parcels to thin it slightly and add flavour.
To serve, remove the chicken from the foil, cut of the end pieces to tidy the dish and then cut each fillet into four and place on the plate at an angle to show the paste. Pour the sauce over each one and serve immediately.
Mashed potatoes and green beans are a good accompaniment with the dish
Ridware Hall 