Poulet Nomade - Nomad's Chicken - Herb Poached Chicken in a Jar

I found this amazing recipe in a French magazine, (Femme Actuelle) whilst waiting in the doctor's surgery! It's such a great idea for portable chicken, hence its name. Chicken breasts are poached in a court-bouillon broth with garlic and thyme; the chicken is then mixed with fresh chèvre (goat's cheese) and artichokes and is popped into a kilner jar with a little flavoured oil. Eh voila! It is ready to pack into a hamper for a picnic! C'est parfait! Serve this wonderful moist chicken salad mixture with crusty baguette or artisanal bread, using the flavoured oil for dipping and dunking! Can be stored once cooked in the fridge for 1 to 2 days. (In the sealed kilner jar.) If you have fresh artichokes available, use them in preference to tinned ones.

• Ready In: 30 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 800  g chicken breasts, skinned and boned
• 1  vegetable stock cube (court-bouillon cube)
• 1  liter water
• 250  ml white wine (optional)
• 150  g  fresh  goat's cheese (NO rind)
•  fresh thyme (2 sprigs)
• 1 -2  garlic clove, peeled and crushed
•  fresh ground black pepper, to taste
•  salt, to taste
• 4  canned artichoke hearts, diced
• 80  g  almonds, slivered and toasted
• 2  tablespoons  pumpkin  oil or 2  tablespoons olive oil

Directions

1. Gently poach the chicken breasts in a saucepan with the water, into which the court-bouillon cube has been dissolved. Poach them over a low to medium heat for 12 to 15 minutes, then turn off the heat, cover the saucepan with a lid and allow to cool in the liquid for about 30 to 45 minutes. (You can add a little white wine to the water if you wish, reduce the water to 750ml and add 250ml of white wine).
2. Once cool enough to handle, drain and cut the chicken into small bite sized pieces.
3. In a bowl, crush the fresh chèvre (goat's cheese) with a fork, until roughly crumbled with the leaves from the fresh thyme sprigs. Add the black pepper, salt and garlic to taste. Mix gently. Then add the chicken pieces and then the chopped artichoke hearts and the toasted slivered almonds. Mix gently before adding the oil - then decant the chicken salad into a clean/sterile glass jar, such as a kilner jar, which has an airtight lid.
4. Seal with the lid before storing in the fridge until needed, for up to 1 to 2 days. Turn the jar upside down a few times throughout the day making sure that the oil covers the chicken.
5. Serve at the table from the jar or on a picnic with plenty of paper napkins and crusty, rustic bread! Salad leaves would also be a great addition to this chicken salad.