Neven Maguire: chicken favourites

Chicken Kiev is a classic chicken recipe dish that never goes out of fashion. I love the moist taste of corn fed chicken. You can prepare this in advance and keep it in the fridge. If you don’t want to deep fry you could do it in the oven. Not everyone likes tarragon so you could use parsley instead. This is a great time of the year for growing herbs. Amelda is having great success with thyme, basil, rosemary and parsley. I have cut the grass! Another first!

The key to both of these recipes is good Quality Assured Irish Chicken. With the kebab recipe I sometimes use chicken breasts instead. Saffron is expensive but you could use turmeric. There is a great spice maker in Athlone, Okho, and you can find their spices in the Simply Better range. They are hard to beat.

A good Irish yoghurt is Killowen from Wexford. I visited Nicholas, Judith and Paula Dunne last year and they have great yoghurt without added sugar. They are the middle generation of the Dunne family with parents and children also involved .. a three generation family farm.

Happy cooking,

Neven

Chicken Kiev

Serves four

1 To make the garlic butter, place the herbs in a bowl with the butter and mix in the garlic, mustard and a good grinding of pepper. Divide into four sections, then put your hands into a bowl of iced water before moulding each piece into a torpedo shape. Roll each one in a square of parchment paper, twisting the ends to secure. Chill for at least 30 minutes to allow the butter to harden.

2 Place the chicken breasts on a chopping board. Remove the fillet from underneath each one and set aside. Make a vertical cut down the length of each chicken breast, but not all the way through. Place the chicken breasts between two pieces of clingfilm until even in thickness. Repeat with the small fillets. Unwrap the chilled garlic butter and place one in the centre of each breast, then put the small fillets on top, pushing them in to create a seal.

3 Put the breadcrumbs and Parmesan in a bowl, season and mix well. Lightly whisk the eggs in a shallow dish and season the flour on a flat plate. Dust each filled chicken breast in the seasoned flour, then dip in the egg and finally roll in the breadcrumb mixture. Arrange on a baking sheet and cover with clingfilm, then chill for at least 30 minutes but up to 24 hours is fine.

4 Heat the oil in a deep-fat fryer or straight-sided pan to 180°C (350°F). Add the coated chicken fillets and deep-fry for eight to 10 minutes until cooked through and golden brown. Drain well on kitchen paper and then leave to rest for a couple of minutes.

5 To serve, arrange the chicken kiev’s on warmed plates with the rice and French beans.

Persian chicken kebabs

Serves four

For the baste:

1 Place the saffron mixture in a large bowl with the lime juice, olive oil, garlic, orange rind, yoghurt and two teaspoons each of salt and pepper. Mix well to combine and stir in the chicken. Cover with clingfilm and put in the fridge for at least eight hours or up to two days is fine.

2 When the chicken has marinated, prepare a charcoal barbecue or heat a griddle pan. Thread on to 12 skewers and then thread the tomatoes on to four separate skewers.

3 To make the baste, melt the butter in a small pan and whisk in the lime juice with half a teaspoon each of salt and pepper.

4 When the charcoals are at a medium heat – this normally takes about 30 minutes – add the chicken and tomato skewers. Obviously a griddle pan will only take about five minutes to heat up. Cook for about four minutes on each side or until the chicken is cooked through and lightly charred and the tomato skins are beginning to blacken and split.

5 To serve, arrange the chicken skewers on warmed plates with a tomato skewer on each one and some flat breads. Add a lime wedge to each one.