Friday 3 September 2010

Chicken, bacon and red wine casserole

This serves 2 at 8 Points each; fill up with 0-Point vegetables.

400g chicken breast (2 largeish)
3 rashers ASDA streaky bacon
1 half-bottle of red wine
2 tablespoons of McDougalls instant thickening granules (I know I KNOW. They were in the cupboard though and they're easier than making a roux provided you give them time to dissolve properly.)
Chicken bouillon cube, if you like
Splash of mushroom ketchup, if you like
Black pepper
Dried thyme and marjoram

And then all your veg, I like a combination of any or all of the following, adjust to taste and hungryness levels!
Carrot
Leek
Celery
Onion
Garlic
Courgette
Bell pepper(green is best)
Mushrooms
Fine beans

You need a BIG pan. Start by spraying it with oil and frying the finely chopped bacon til it sizzles and browns. Then, add the chicken breasts and brown them all over. I like leaving them whole for this recipe but it's your call if you want it to be more like a traditional stew with them in chunks.

After that, add the chopped onion and garlic, followed swiftly by the carrot and celery. Let everything soften and cook down. After that, it's in with all the vegetables, down with the heat, and leave them to soften and cook down; if you like you can take the chicken breasts out temporarily to allow for easier stirring.

And after that, it's just in with the wine, herbs and any other seasonings you like, turning the heat down and leaving it to cook through gently. When you're ready, thicken it with the (sorry) thickening granules and serve with perhaps some mashed roast butternut squash and broccoli (well, that's what we're having with ours).

I should say that you can cut the Points down on this by using less wine; I'm being generous because we don't drink particularly and I know we'd just plonk the whole small bottle in.

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