Tuesday 23 August 2016

Green pesto chicken and roasted veg

Sunday I made something I haven't made in while but its got loads of flavour and something so simple straight forward to make. If I'm honest I really had no energy to be stood in the kitchen for hours to make something because my mum was colouring my hair later in the day and if you've seen how long my hair is it takes a while!



I got the idea from a Jamie Oliver's hit'n'run tray baked chicken but over time I have adjusted it and now I make it to my preference. All it is, is roasted veg and chicken and spices/herbs, simple right?

What you'll need
Sharp knife
chopping board
Roasting tray

Ingredients
Mini chicken fillets 400g
Plum/cherry tomatoes (couple hand fulls
2/3 peppers
1 medium/large red onion
1 teaspoon of olive oil (optional)
Balsamic Glaze (if you're unable to get hold of this balsamic vinegar can be used instead)
Smoked/hot paprika
190g green pesto
How to make
1. Preheat the oven 150°C
2. Deseed and chop the peppers up into chunks and put in the roasting tray.
3. Chop the onion in wedges (the trick to keep these wedges whole, slice/cut from where the root of the onion is), place in the roasting tray.
4. Place a hand full or two of the tomatoes into the roasting tray, add one teaspoon of olive oil and place to one side.
5. Take the chilled chicken and place it in a mixing bowl and add about 80g (just under half of jar) of green pesto and a sprinkling of paprika of your choice and mix this into the chicken, making sure there is a coating all over.
6. Add the chicken to the roasting tray.
7. Add one or two teaspoons of the green pesto and drizzle the balsamic glaze and mix.
8. Place the chicken and vegetables in the oven and cook for around 30 minutes but checking at regular intervals. The cooking time may vary depending the thickness of the chicken you have used but if you are unsure cut the thickest bit in the middle and check.
9. Once cook and cooled down a bit (the tomatoes will be extremely hot).. Serve

Please remember hygiene when dealing with raw chicken and ensure all utensils and surfaces are cleaned appropriately (including yours hands!)

I think it is great all year around as it's a light enough dish for the summer and you can have it with salad or in the winter you can add some more winter vegetables like butternut squash, potatoes or even sweet potato. Sometimes if I have some garlic (1 or 2 cloves, crushed) or fresh herbs like thyme or basil I will add a sprinkle of these to add a little more flavour

Have you tried something similar? Or are you thinking about giving this a try? Let me know how you get on, contact me on any of my social media accounts or comment below :)

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