Hey there 80’s classic I’m coming at you with both my wardrobe and my food right now. In terms of wardrobe there’s this pair of vintage jeans I own which are a stone grey with an elasticised waste, they’re sort of baggy and sit up high and I roll them up and sometimes wear them with platforms, a black silky cami and probably not a bra. They’re fantastic. Pretty much all men hate them, but I love them and that’s the part that matters. I also love Chicken Kiev and I’m bringing it back. Even if it’s only at my own table.

I’ve gone and made it a little better for you than the pre made ones you can buy too. The filling has a mix of butter and olive oil and is heavy on the herbs, and I made my own crumbs out of rye sourdough. You can use the bread you prefer but fresh crumbs are so much nicer than pre packaged with this.

The smashed peas are the green thing you’re craving mid week and the fresh flavour is so delicious with the garlic laced butter filling in the kiev. And oven baked wedges because why not? You could use sweet potato or normal potato both would work well. I only use 1 chicken breast between two because that’s a big enough serving for me and most people realistically.

Do you know what else works well with chicken kiev? Those jeans I love haha.

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 Chicken breast

1 egg white

1 cup fresh breadcrumbs

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp white pepper

2 tsp butter (best quality you can afford)

1 tsp olive oil

1 Tbs finely chopped parsley

2 tsps finely chopped spring onion or chives

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp white pepper

1 small clove of crushed garlic.

1/2 tsp lemon zest

2 medium potatoes

1 tsp olive oil

1.5 cups peas

1/4 cup flat  leaf parsley leaves

1 Tbs spring onion or chives

pinch salt and white pepper

1 tsp lemon zest

2 tsp lemon juice

Directions

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius. Line 2 trays with baking/parchment paper.

Mix together the ingredients for the filling and then place on a small piece of parchment paper and roll into a log shape, about 2cms thick. Place in the freezer.

Wash the potatoes and leave the skins on, slice into 2-3cm thick batons/wedges. Place in a medium sauce pan and fill with enough water to just cover. Add a generous pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Then carefully drain. Set aside.

Remove the smaller side fillet from your chicken and then cut the breast in half horizontally so you end up with two fillets of equal thickness. Take the butter filling out of the freezer and cut in half. Place a half in the centre of each chicken breast half and fold the fillet over the butter to enclose. If you have any points where you’ve cut the chicken too thin then use that spare little fillet to make sure the butter is covered. You want to make sure the butter is completely enclosed.

Place the egg white in a bowl and whisk lightly. Place the bread crumbs in another bowl and mix with the salt and pepper.

Take a chicken parcel and dip in the egg white, making sure all sides are covered and being gentle so you don’t ‘unwrap’ it. Then coat with the bread crumbs, making sure you have an even coating. Place on one of the prepared baking trays and bake in the oven for 30 minutes.

Toss the par-boiled wedges with the remaining olive oil and salt and spread in an even layer on the second baking tray. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden and crisp.

Blanch peas in hot water for 1 minute. Place peas, parsley, chives lemon zest and juice in a food processor. Add the salt and pepper and blend until almost smooth, a few chunky bits is fine!

To serve, spread the pea puree on the plate, sit the Kiev on top and have wedges on the side.

HH. x