Maille Culinary Challenge - Pan-fried chicken with Dijon sauce and hazelnut tagliatelle

Who says that a midweek family meal cannot be gourmet?! Maille (pronounced 'my') is a gourmet brand of perfect accompaniments to make an every day meal something special!

A number of bloggers were invited to try the Maille Culinary Challenge to develop an inspiring dish using some of Maille's products... so here's my entry! I do hope that you make it yourself and imagine yourself dining in an exquisite French restaurant! It's great for entertaining but the secret is that it's quick and easy but deliciously divine! Enjoy!

 

Pan fried chicken with Dijon sauce and hazelnut tagliatelle - serves 4, takes about 30 minutes.

 

Ingredients

Splash of olive oil

4 medium sized chicken breasts, skinned and boned

4 'nests' of dried tagliatelle pasta

500g Greek-style yoghurt

1 level tbsp. cornflour

1-2 tsp Maille Dijon mustard

75g parmesan cheese, finely grated

2 egg yolks

Salt & black pepper, to season

80g diced pancetta

Approx. 20-30 vine cherry tomatoes (still on the vine, if possible)

A good drizzle of Maille hazelnut oil

Rocket salad, washed

 

 

Method

1. First, heat the splash of olive oil in a heavy based frying pan and gently pan fry the chicken breasts until cooked through and starting to brown (about 10-15 mins).
2. Cook the pasta in a large saucepan until 'al dente' (about 8-10 mins).
3. While the chicken and pasta are cooking, make the Dijon sauce. Whisk four tablespoons of the yoghurt with the cornflour and the mustard until smooth.
4. Blend in the remaining yoghurt and bring to the boil, stirring constantly, until thickened and smooth.
5. While stirring, add the cheese, egg yolks and season with salt and pepper.
6. Remove the cooked chicken from the pan and keep warm. Add the diced pancetta to the pan along with the vine cherry tomatoes and fry over a high heat for 5 mins.
7. Drain the cooked pasta and toss in bowl with a good drizzle of hazelnut oil, cooked pancetta and a handful of rocket.
8. Serve the chicken with the Dijon sauce poured over with the pan fried tomatoes and hazelnut tagliatelle. 

 

 

This dish was enjoyed by all of the family, including the children. You can adjust the amount of Dijon mustard and parmesan cheese to taste - I personally love Dijon mustard, so would go for at least 2 teaspoons of mustard, but the flavour is still there, even with just 1 teaspoon.

 

So, I hope you give it a try! Let me know what you think! You can buy most Maille products are major supermarkets, but all of the range is available in their online boutique - click here to tempt your tastebuds!

Advent Post #16: Jack's Welsh Lamb, Rocket & Parmesan Risotto

My son has 2 passions - Minecraft & cooking! So when we're providing screen-time distraction cooking is always the answer! Most families (mine included!) often cook sweet treats with their children, but I've come to realise that cooking of savoury dishes is actually a greater life skill as you can't live off cupcakes once you've left home!

We first tried this dish whilst sampling some tasty delights at a Christmas Market event in Portmeirion and was loved by all of us, so armed with the handy recipe book provided by Meat Promotion Wales my son made it for us one evening this week.

 

The verdict - still as delicious as when the professional made it! So here's the recipe - enjoy!

Lamb, Rocket & Parmesan Risotto
Takes 30-35 mins, serves 2 very generous portions (but we served 2 adults and 2 children!)

Ingredients
225g lean Welsh lamb leg steaks, cut into small cubes
1 tsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
150g risotto (Arborio) rice
1 pint stock
Black pepper
50g sugar snap peas, sliced
50g frozen peas
Rocket leaves
Parmesan cheese or mature Cheddar cheese

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and lightly fry the onion and lean lamb cubes.
2. Add the risotto rice and stir thoroughly.
3. Add a little stock and bring to the boil, add plenty of black pepper, add the remaining stock gradually and give it a good stir every now and again, simmering gently for about 30 mins or until the rice is cooked and all the liquid has been absorbed. (Add a little more stock to achieve your desired texture/consistency).
4. During the last 5 mins of cooking time add the sugar snap peas and frozen peas, stir together and cook until the sugar snaps just start to soften.
5. Season and finish off with a handful of rocket and grated parmesan cheese or a strong Cheddar cheese.

We were so impressed with my son's cooking of this recipe! He's decided that he wants to take part in Masterchef when he's older and this is what he will cook! I hope he sticks to this dream (along with being a train driver and pilot!) and gains his Michelin stars!