Crafts and Life

For the mushrooms

15 g butter
2 tbs rapeseed oil or vegetable oil
200 g mushrooms, sliced half a centimetre thick
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
Half tsp dried oregano or dried mixed Italian herbs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 onion, thinly sliced

For the chicken

2 boneless chicken breasts, skin removed
4 cm piece fresh root ginger, finely grated
2 garlic cloves, finely crushed
1 tbs dark soy sauce
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp dried oregano or dried mixed Italian herbs
2 tbs rapeseed oil or vegetable oil
6-8 rashers streaky bacon
100 ml red wine
30 ml sherry
1 quarter chicken stock cube, dissolved in 100 ml boiling water
1 tsp cornflour, mixed to a paste with 1-2 tbs cold water
garlic bread, to serve

To prepare the mushrooms, heat the butter and 1 tablespoon of the oil together in a frying pan over medium high heat, add the mushrooms and cook for 5 to 7 minutes until coloured and softened. Add the garlic and fry for a minute, then season with the oregano or mixed Italian herbs and some salt and pepper. Keep warm.

Heat the remaining oil in a pan over medium-high heat, add the onion and cook for 10 minutes until softened.

To prepare the chicken, loosely wrap each breast in cling film and flatten with a meat mallet to about 1 cm thick. In a shallow dish, mix together the ginger, garlic, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce and oregano or mixed Italian herbs. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil and some pepper, then add the chicken breasts and rub the mixture all over.

When ready to cook, griddle or grill the bacon until crispy, then remove on to kitchen paper and keep warm.

Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat with a drizzle of the remaining oil. Add the chicken, holding back any excess marinade. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or until cooked through and nicely browned, adding any extra marinade for the last three minutes or so of cooking (you can also add any liquid that has oozed from the cooked mushrooms at this point). Transfer the chicken to warm serving plates.

Pour the wine and sherry into the pan used to cook the chicken, bring to the boil and bubble for 1 to 2 minutes to reduce, scraping any browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer, then stir in the cornflour and cook for one minute until thickened to a gravy; if it gets too thick, add a splash of boiling water. Top the chicken with the bacon and arrange the onions and mushrooms alongside. Pour over the sauce and served with garlic bread.

Serves 2 – taken from The Incredible Spice Men by Cyrus Todiwala and Tony Singh