Things I have been cooking lately #97: Spiced chicken with bacon and lentils

This tasty weeknight supper is another winner from Jamie’s 15 Minute Meals. Not only is it quick and delicious but it packs a really big vegetable punch as well helping you towards your five a day. As always with any of the Jamie Oliver quick meals, be prepared to work FAST!

Spiced chicken with bacon and lentils

Adapted from Jamie’s 15 Minute Meals

For the lentils

1 onion
1 carrot
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
Olive oil
2 400g tins of Puy lentils
1 ripe tomato
200g baby spinach
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
4 heaped tablespoons of natural yoghurt

For the chicken

4 skinless chicken breasts
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
4 cloves of garlic
1 handful of fresh thyme
4 rashers of smoked pancetta
300g asparagus

Salt
Pepper
Olive oil

A loaf of crusty bed to serve.

Preheat your oven to 180 C. Get out your food processor with the bowl blade in. Put a large lidded pan over a medium heat and a large frying pan over a medium heat.

Peel and halve the onion and carrot and then process with the rosemary leaves until fine. Put the carrot and onion mix into the large pan with a tablespoon of oil.

On a large piece of greaseproof paper toss the chicken with salt, pepper and paprika. Fold the paper over and bash and flatten with something heavy (like a rolling pin) until 1.5cm thicken. Put into the frying pan with a tablespoon of oil, the unpeeled whole garlic cloves and the thyme, turning after 3 of 4 minutes until golden and cooked through.

Stir the tinned lentils and their juices into the veg pan with the roughly chopped tomato and put the lid on. Put the bread in the oven to warm.

Roughly chop the spinach in the process and add to the lentils and the red wine vinegar. When the lentils are boiling and the spinach is wilted, season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add the pancetta and trimmed asparagus to the chicken pan and fry until golden and crispy.

Tip the lentils onto a platter, then marble through most of the yoghurt. Remove the chicken to a board, cut in half at an angle and serve on top of the lentils with the pancetta, asparagus and garlic. Dollop over the remaining yoghurt then serve with crusty bread.

Serves 4