Just Fleshy

Grilled Chicken Salad with Lavender
 

 

 

Lavender may seem like an odd salad ingredient, but its delightful scent has a natural affinity with sweet garlic, orange and wild herbs. Make the most of natural flavorings, which can add interest to a meal without the need to add fattening ingredients.

 

Serving : 6


Ingredients

  • 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

  • 900ml/1 ½ pints/3 ¾ cups light chicken stock

  • 175g/6oz/1cup fine polenta

  • 50g/2oz/4 tbsp butter

  • 450g/1lb young spinach

  • 175g/6oz lamb’s lettuce

  • 8 fresh lavender sprigs

  • 8 small tomatoes, halved

  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the lavender marinade

  • 6 stems fresh lavender

  • 10ml/2 tsp finely grated orange zest

  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed

  • 10ml/2 tsp clear honey

  • 30ml/2 tbsp olive oil

  • 10ml/2 tsp chopped fresh thyme

  • 10ml/2 tsp chopped fresh marjoram salt

Directions

  • To make the marinade, strip the lavender flowers from the stems and combine with the orange zest, garlic, honey and salt. Add the olive oil and herbs slash the chicken breasts deeply, spread the mixture over the chicken and leave to marinate in a cool place for at least 20 minutes

  • Meanwhile, bring the chicken stock to the boil in a heavy-based saucepan. Add the polenta in a steady stream, stirring all the time until thick: this will take 2-3 minutes. Turn out the cooked polenta on to a 2.5cm/1in deep buttered tray and allow to cool.

  • Heat the grill to moderate. Grill the chicken for about 15 minutes, turning once.

  • Cut the polenta into 2.5/ 1in cubes with a wet knife. Heat the butter in a large frying pan and fry the polenta cubes until golden.

  • Wash the salad leaves and pat dry, then divide among 4 serving plates. Slice each chicken breast and lay over the salad. Place the polenta among the salad; decorate with the lavender and tomatoes, season and serve.

Cook’s Tip

Lavender marinade is an unusual and quite delicious flavoring that goes well with saltwater fish as well as chicken. Try it, for example, over grilled cod, haddock, halibut, sea bass and bream.

 

Nutritional Information

  • Energy: 332Kcals/138kJ

  • Fat, total: 11.3g

  • Saturated fat: 5.2g

  • Protein: 30g

  • Carbohydrate: 26.6g

  • Sugar, total: 4.13g

  • Fibre-NSP: 2.8g

  • Sodium: 603mg