Ingredients
1.5kg free-range chicken
1 leek, sliced
1 carrot, peeled & sliced
1/2 tbsp salt
10 whole black peppercorns
few parsley stalks
flat leaf parsley to decorate
SAUCE
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 onion, chopped
2 tbsp curry powder or paste
1 tbsp tomato puree
1 tbsp apricot jam
85ml red wine
150ml water
1 bay leaf
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Caster sugar and a squeeze of lemon to taste
2 lemon slices
425ml good-quality mayonnaise
Method
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Place the chicken into a large saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, cover with water and add the leek, carrot, salt, peppercorns and parsley stalks. Bring to the boil and poach for 1 hour, turning the chicken once during the cooking process
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Once cooked return it to the pan and leave for one hour, then remove the chicken, allow to cool completely, and tear the chicken from the bones into rough pieces
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Meanwhile, for the sauce, heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat. Add the chopped onion and cook gently for 3-4 minutes. Add the curry powder and cook for a further two minutes, stirring well. Add the tomato purée, apricot jam, wine, water and bay leaf
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Bring the mixture to the boil. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then add the sugar, lemon slices and lemon juice, to taste. Reduce the heat until the mixture is simmering and simmer, uncovered, for 5-10 minutes. Strain the sauce through a fine meshed sieve and set aside to cool
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When you are ready to assemble the dish, place the mayonnaise into a bowl, add some of the curry sauce and mix well, taste and add more until it is well flavoured. The consistency should coat the back of a spoon, reserve some of the sauce for later, add the cold chicken to the sauce
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Add more curry sauce if you think it needs it. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, caster sugar and a squeeze of lemon
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Arrange the chicken on a serving platter. Thin down the remaining sauce so it will almost pour and drizzle it over the chicken. Sprinkle over the parsley and serve with rice salad
- For the rice salad. Allow 1 small cup of long grain rice per 2 persons and cook according to your favourite method . Allow to cool and make sure each grain of rice is separate. Chop a choice of the following ingredients into a small 1cm dice. Cucumbers (seeds removed), yellow, red, green, orange peppers, (raisins can be added but I generally steer clear of raisins), peeled raw grated carrot, toasted pine nuts, chopped flat leaf parsley, grated lemon zest, lots of salt and freshly ground black pepper and even a dressing made of white wine vinegar, olive oil, lemon juice and a pinch of sugar.
- Mix everything together, taste and season again
