Nigel Slaters Chicken With Apricots And Coconut Milk Recipes

NIGEL SLATER'S CHICKEN WITH APRICOTS AND COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• Peel and discard the outer leaves of the lemongrass to reveal the softer inner leaves. Cut into short lengths and put in a food processor. Peel the ginger, slice into thin pieces and add to the lemongrass.
• Chop the chillies, discarding their stems, and add to the ginger with the peeled garlic cloves and the roughly chopped stems and half the leaves of the coriander. Grate the zest of the limes into the food processor, then turn the machine on and let it chop everything to a coarse paste, adding a little oil.
• Add the tomatoes, fish sauce and dark soy and continue whizzing.
• Warm the oil in a deep pan over a moderate to high heat and use it to brown the chicken pieces lightly, turning them so they colour nicely on both sides.
• Meanwhile, halve and stone the apricots and set aside. Lift the chicken out and pour anything more than a tablespoon of oil away. Add half the spice paste and let it fry over a low to moderate heat for two minutes, till fragrant, then return the chicken to the pan.
• Pour in the coconut milk, stir, cover and leave to simmer gently over a low heat for ten minutes. (The remaining spice paste can be kept in the fridge, covered with a little oil and a lid, for about a week.)
• Slide the apricots into the sauce and cook for ten minutes, until soft. Test the chicken and fruit for doneness, then add the juice of the limes and the remaining coriander leaves, roughly chopped. Correct the seasoning with a little salt if necessary. Serve with rice or bread.