Poached chicken salad with quinoa & toasted hazelnuts

Ingredients

• 10 chicken tenderloins
• 2 pieces each of cinnamon bark, cardamom pods, star anise & chilli flakes
• 200 grams white quinoa
• 80 grams toasted hazelnuts
• 3 cloves fresh garlic, crushed
• 1 Spanish onion
• 1 carrot
• 1 red capsicum
• 1 zucchini
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs
• Sea salt & cracked black pepper
• 150 mls mirin
• Handful of baby spinach
• 1 litre water

Method

1. Lightly toast the hazelnuts in a medium heat frypan, then roll them in a tea towel to remove the skins. Chop roughly then set asdie.
2. Bring the water to the boil together with the spices and mirin. Turn off then add the chicken tenderloins, put lid on and leave for 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.
3. Strain the stock, then add 200ml to the quinoa stirring vigorously then cover with glad wrap to let steam. Taste a little to check whether you need to add any more stock. It shouldn’t be chalky.
4. Dice all the vegetables into 1cm cubes, then In a frying pan over medium heat gently fry them together with the garlic until they are just starting to soften.
5. Add these vegetables to the quinoa along with the fresh herbs and then season with sea salt & cracked black pepper.
6. Add the baby spinach, then dice the chicken tenderloins into large pieces then toss this through the quinoa mix, then serve. Sprinkle the toasted and de-skinned hazelnuts chopped over the top.

• chicken
• quinoa