Chicken Lap Lap – Polynesian Style Chicken with Taro

We have just spent a week visiting family in Rarotonga, Cook Islands where we really did just relax at the beach and not get distracted by our everyday life of emails, blogging, Twitter, Facebook since we had no access to it. I thought I was going to blog while I was there, Facebook pictures of me lounging on the beach and tweet about local cuisine…how reliant we become on our media outlets and to find you have none came as a shock…but not for long. After the first morning the IPad and mobile phone where soon replaced with a good book, snorkeling in the lagoons, taking a siesta, shopping at the local food markets, sampling new cuisine and sun set cocktails.

While there I bought a book on South Pacific cuisine called Me’a Kai by Robert Oliver which is beautifully presented with glorious photos of local dishes, the people and scenery. I have never cooked Pacific cuisine even though we have access to a lot of the ingredients in Auckland so this Sunday, upon our return, we headed to Avondale market were we knew we would be able to buy Taro root and Taro leaves which are common to South Pacific dishes. The has a great combination of spices with a creamy coconut base. We also had the pleasure of sharing this meal with Sue from Couscous & Conscious who is currently staying in Auckland.

Ingredients
Base

• 2 large banana leaves
• 5 cups grated taro root
• 200ml coconut milk
• 2 cups spinach, wilted & chopped
• 4 tomatoes, quartered

1. Pre heat oven to 180C.
2. Boil or steam the banana leaf to soften and lay one leaf in the bottom of a large greased casserole dish.
3. Cover banana leaf and casserole dish with grated taro root and pour over 100ml of coconut milk. Place the spinach on top of the taro.
4. Place the quartered tomatoes around the side of the dish.
5. Pour 100ml of coconut milk over everything and cover with another banana leaf and the casserole dish lid.

Chicken Marinade

• 1 free range chicken, cut into 8 pieces
• Juice of 1 lime
• Vegetable oil
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1.5 tsp coriander seeds
• 1tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp cardamom seeds
• 1 chili
• 2 cloves garlic

1. Place chicken pieces in a large bowl.
2. Grind spices in a mortar & pestle then add chili and garlic and grind together to form paste.
3. Add lime juice and oil to the paste then pour over and coat chicken pieces completely.
4. Place chicken in a roasting dish.
5. Put both the taro base and chicken tray in the oven to roast for 40 minutes. After 40 minutes remove the casserole lid and top banana leaf off the taro and roast for a further 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked.

Sauce

• 5 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp thinly sliced ginger
• Juice and zest of 2 small limes
• 1tbsp flour
• 200ml coconut milk
• 2 spring onion, finely sliced
• Salt & pepper

1. While chicken is cooking make the sauce
2. Place a tablespoon of oil in a pan with the ginger and garlic over a low heat.
3. Cook for several minutes then add the flour to form a paste and cook for a few more minutes.
4. Add the coconut milk, lime juice and zest and spring onions and cook for 10 minutes over a low heat.
   Season with salt and pepper.

To assemble arrange the chicken pieces over the taro base and then pour over the coconut sauce just before serving.

Creole Quinoa Jambalaya

The first bag of quinoa I had in the cupboard was almost up to it’s expiry before I got around to using it but once I got into the swing I was pretty well hooked. I love the texture and the nutty flavour it offers a dish, it’s perfect for warm salads and works perfectly as an alternative to rice in Jambalaya. I’d seen the recipe on a product advertisement for Ceres Quinoa and decided to try it. I have changed the method slightly and added a few more ingredients like paprika and tumeric which I associate with Paella. I found that rather than cook it all in one pot which is typical for Jambalaya the quinoa is better cooked on it’s own to help it ‘sprout’ then added to the rest of the dish for the final stages of cooking.

Creole Jambalaya originates from the French Quarter of New Orleans. It evolved by the Spanish attempting to make paella in the New World, where saffron was not readily available due to import costs and tomatoes became the substitute for saffron. As time went on, French influence became strong in New Orleans, and spices from the Caribbean changed this New World paella into a unique dish.

Ingredients – serves 4

• 1.5 cups Quinoa (I used the red variety)
• 4 chicken legs (thigh and drum separated)
• 12 large prawns
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 red pepper, de-seeded and sliced
• 1 yellow pepper, de-seeded and sliced
• 1 can of chopped tomatoes
• 2 cups of stock
• Handful of fresh oregano or thyme, chopped
• 2 tsp sweet paprika
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp chilli flakes or 1 fresh chilli, chopped
• handful of fresh parsley, chopped
• salt & pepper to season
• Olive oil for frying

Method

1. Rinse quinoa in cold water, then drain. Add grain to a pan with 4 cups of water and bring to the boil then simmer for 8 minutes until the grain has ‘sprouted’. Drain in a colander and put aside.
2. Place a little oil in a large frying pan and add the chicken, browning on all sides.
3. Remove the chicken from the pan and add the onion, garlic and peppers and cook on a medium heat for 5 minutes until the onions are opaque, stirring constantly.
4. Return the chicken to the pan and add the tomatoes, stock, oregano, paprika, chilli and turmeric.
5. Bring to the boil, cover with a lid and simmer on a low heat for 20 minutes.
6. Stir in the prawns and the quinoa and return the lid and cook for a further 5 minutes. The dish should still have some liquid, if it doesn’t add a little water.
7. Check the chicken and prawns are cooked, add chopped parsley and serve immediately.

It does re-heat well if you want to make it in advance, the quinoa holds better and doesn’t absorb all the liquid liek rice would.

Upcoming Classes & Events at the Gourmet Gannet – 2011

Cheese Making – Halloumi, Mozzarella & Ricotta

Cake Decorating – learn how to decorate a kids novelty 3D birthday cake

Tapas – Make and enjoy a range of Tapas

Creative Salads – How about a Moroccan Quinoa Salad? Or Mediterranean Lentil Salad?

Creole Cooking with a Twist – Quinoa Jambalaya, Pineapple & Mango Ice cream

Savoury Pie Workshop – Come and make traditional pork pies or gala pies with a hot water pastry crust.

Homemade Sausages – No additives or fillers, just great taste!

Chocolate & Plain Croissant – Ever wanted to make your own croissants?

Chicken wrapped in Bacon with Silverbeet, Orange & Pinenuts

Some of the girls who come to class had requested that I show them how to bone a whole chicken, as we know, it is far cheaper to buy a whole chicken than to buy boned pieces. They all did so well and I think there was even a few budding butchers in the group! So a special recipe was needed for the freshly butchered chickens, a dish no one had tried before but with easy accessible ingredients. The salty flavours of the bacon and the bitterness of the greens are balance beautifully I feel with the sweet citric orange. It’s a great winter dish that can be served a crusty bread, polenta or mashed potatoes.

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken, boned and divided into 8 pieces
• 8 slices streaky bacon
• 1 orange
• A few cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 bunch silverbeet or Swiss chard
• 1 tbsp pinenuts
• Olive oil
• Salt & Pepper

Method

• Peel strips from the orange rind, avoiding the pith.
• Squeeze the juice from the orange and reserve.
• Dry roast the pine nuts in a pan for a few minutes.
• In a large deep pan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil and add garlic, cook till softened.
• Add the silver beet & orange peel and cook till chard is wilted. Season to taste.
• Remove silver beet from the pan.
• Season chicken with salt & pepper and wrap with bacon.
• Place 2 tablespoons of oil into a deep pan large enough to take all the chicken & silverbeet.
• Brown chicken on all sides then remove from pan.
• Return the silver beet to the pan with orange juice & pine nuts.
• Arrange the chicken on top of the silver beat and cook over a medium heat until the chicken is cooked, about 15-20 minutes.