Chicken with Braised Chicory & Orange

📝 Ingredients

• 600 g chicken breast (3 fillets of about 200 g each)
• 6 heads of chicory (about 120 g each)
• 3 oranges (zest of one orange + about 250 ml juice)
• 280 g basmati rice
• 20 g unsalted butter + 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp honey (about 20 g)
• 1 shallot (about 30 g)
• 1 chicken stock cube + 150 ml hot water
• 2 tsp cornflour (mixed with 2 tbsp cold water)
• ½ tsp dried thyme
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Large sauté pan with lid
• Large saucepan
• Colander
• Citrus juicer
• Fine grater
• Paring knife

📖 Steps

1. Prepare the chicory: remove any damaged leaves and wipe the heads with damp kitchen paper rather than rinsing them under running water. Halve them lengthways, then cut out a small cone at the base with the tip of a knife to remove part of the core, where the bitterness is concentrated.
2. Finely grate the zest of one orange (only the orange part; the white pith is bitter), then squeeze all 3 oranges to get about 250 ml juice. Peel and thinly slice the shallot. Cut the chicken breasts into strips about 1 cm thick and season with salt and pepper.
3. Heat the butter and olive oil in the large sauté pan over a medium-high heat. Place the chicory halves cut side down without overlapping (in two batches if needed) and leave them to colour for 4 to 5 min without touching them, until nicely golden.
4. Turn the chicory over, drizzle with the honey and cook for 2 more min to caramelise lightly, then set aside on a plate. In the same pan, over a high heat, sear the chicken strips for 3 min, stirring, until golden but still pink in the middle, and set aside.
5. Lower the heat to medium, add the shallot and thyme and fry for 1 min, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom. Crumble the stock cube into the 150 ml hot water, pour into the pan with the orange juice and zest, then return the chicory, golden side up.
6. Cover and braise for 12 to 15 min over a low heat, until the chicory is tender when pierced with the tip of a knife. Meanwhile, rinse the basmati rice and cook it for 10 to 12 min in a large pan of salted boiling water, then drain.
7. Return the chicken and its juices to the pan and simmer for 3 min uncovered. Pour in the cornflour mixture, stirring gently, and cook for 1 to 2 more min, until the sauce coats the spoon and the chicken is white all the way through. Taste before adding salt: the stock is already salty.
8. Divide the rice between plates, top with the chicory halves and chicken strips, then spoon over plenty of the orange sauce. Serve piping hot.