This recipe is adapted from one of those recipe cards I picked up at Waitrose some time ago. The original uses chicken legs but we had some skinless chicken breasts in the fridge already so I used them instead.
Waitrose recipes tend not to disappear or be hijacked so to see it on their website click here.
I cooked it in a favourite cast iron casserole dish that was given to me by my Aunty Vera donkeys years ago. Probably in the 1980's when cast iron cookware was all the rage - if the cookery magazines were anything to go by in those days. I suspect that my aunt bought one but was not enamoured with it, preferring her Pyrex instead! I like it because it's actually quite small and ideal for making something for just the two of us.
Of course if you don't have a cast iron dish you can do the first part of the recipe in a frying pan on the hob and finish it off in an ovenproof dish in the oven.
The recipe was easy to make and with the grapes and wine had a slightly "weekend" appeal, yet was quick enough for a midweek meal. The chicken was moist and delicious. We had ours with the usual selection of weekday veg and mash.
Ingredients
2 chicken breasts
a splash of oil
1 large or 2 small leeks, washed and sliced, not too thickly, not too thinly
a large handful of green grapes, washed and halved
2 small sprigs fresh rosemary
1 small glass of white wine (or use chicken stock)
a squeeze of lemon juice
Method
Preheat the oven to 200°C / 180° fan / gas mk 6.
Using a cast iron casserole dish* on the hob, heat the oil then fry the chicken breasts, skin side down for 10 minutes until golden brown. Turn the chicken and cook on the other side for 2-3 minutes. Remove from the dish and set aside.
Add the leeks to the dish with a pinch of salt and fry for 3-4 minutes until beginning to soften.
Stir in the grapes, rosemary, wine and lemon juice.
Remove from the hob, place the chicken breasts on top and roast, uncovered, in the oven for about 25 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.
Serve with mashed or baked potatoes and veg.
Serves 2.
*If you don't have a cast iron casserole or one that can be used on the hob, do the frying in a frying pan then transfer the leek mixture to an ovenproof dish of some kind, maybe ceramic or enamel. Place the chicken on top as above and roast as above.
I do enjoy the results of cooking with grapes but, for some reason, I hardly ever do it. This does sound like a good dish. I was seduced by the allure of cast iron cookware in the 1980s and I still use cast iron casserole dishes today but the appeal of the heavy, cast iron saucepans wore off pretty quickly and they conveniently disappeared when we moved house around the end of the 80s.
ReplyDeleteWe love our cast iron dishes. The large sauté dish, the casserole dish and the smaller gratin dishes are all brilliant for what we use them for and in fact the best things for the job.
DeleteSome of ours have come from brocantes in France, for next to nothing. It always amazes me that someone will get rid of such an expensive item for as little as a couple of euros, which must say something about how normal family cooking is changing in France maybe.