I posted a very brief recipe for this on the June newsletter but thought I would pop it on the blog as it’s a great, easy summer recipe. Perfect for a hot day sat out in the garden, it can be done in advance and put together at the last moment.
You’ll need:
I chicken breast per person
A couple of bay leaves
A splash of white wine (not essential)
A jar of decent mayonnaise
A big bunch of fresh tarragon and some dried for poaching
A little Pernod (or you could just use tarragon vinegar)
A lemon
A third of a cucumber per person
Salt and pepper
First of all you need to poach the chicken breasts. Pop them into a pan where they will fit snugly in the bottom. Pour over water to cover, pop in a couple of bay leaves, add a splash of white wine if you have it, salt and pepper and about a teaspoon of dried tarragon. Bring to the boil and then turn the heat down so the liquid is barely simmering. Pop a lid on leaving a little space for steam to escape and set the timer for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes turn off the heat and leave to sit in the hot liquid for another 10 minutes or so. You can take a breast out and cut it in two to check it is cooked through. Remember not to overcook them. You want juicy, tender breasts.
Remove from the liquid and leave to go cold. You can do this the day or morning before.
Peel the cucumber (the last time I did this dish it was to feed 8 and I used 2 big cucumbers) and scrape out the seeds with a teaspoon. Cut into bite size chunks.
In a bowl take about a tablespoon of mayonnaise per chicken breast and loosen with a little Pernod and water until you have the consistency of thick pouring cream. You don’t need much Pernod as it’s a strong flavour but you do want it to have that aniseed punch that makes the dish. Add a big bunch of roughly chopped tarragon, the juice of half a lemon and salt and pepper to taste.
Cut the chicken breast into thick slices and pop into the tarragon mayonnaise together with the cucumber slices. Mix gently, check the seasoning and then serve with either a little more fresh tarragon, some chopped flat leaf parsley or a few pea shoots if you can find them (not possible here!).
Bon appetit!
