What’s better than a warming chicken and halloumi quinoa salad? Nothing! This recipe includes some seasonal comforting ingredients, as well as some nutritious vegetables, making it an excellently balanced dish. If, like me, you despise the cold, then fear not – this recipe promises to warm you up! Enjoy!
Ingredients:
This recipe makes approximately three servings.
For the marinade:
1 chicken breast
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon dried thyme
½ tablespoon lemon juice
2 cloves garlic
Salt
Pepper
For the rest of the dish:
1 yellow pepper
1 leek
1 onion
1 vegetable stock cube
100g quinoa
600ml hot water
100g halloumi
A handful cherry tomatoes
A handful spinach
A handful walnuts
1 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic
Salt
Pepper
Equipment:
Large frying pan
Small frying pan
Baking tray
Measuring jug
Spatula
Knife
Scissors
Chopping board
Bowl
Measuring scales
Tongs
Method:
- Combine all of the marinade ingredients in a bowl and mix well until an even consistency is achieved.
- Use the scissors to cut the chicken breast into small pieces.
- Add the pieces of chicken to the marinade and mix well.
- Set the chicken aside to marinate so that it becomes extremely flavoursome.
- Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees.
- Chop the onion, pepper and leek into thin slices, and chop the cherry tomatoes into halves.
- Boil the kettle and pour 600ml water onto a vegetable stock cube and mix well until the stock cube dissolves.
- Heat up the olive oil in the frying pan on a high heat. Add the garlic and gently fry the vegetables until they have softened slightly.
- Add the quinoa and mix the contents of the pan thoroughly.
- Pour the vegetable stock into the pan and turn down the heat slightly. Ensure that you mix the quinoa and vegetables regularly so that it doesn’t stick to the pan!
- Cook the quinoa until it is transparent and until there is no remaining excess stock.
- Heat up the small frying pan on a medium heat and add the chicken.
- Cook the chicken for about 7 minutes, making sure you stir it frequently to ensure even cooking.
- When the quinoa is cooked add the chicken, spinach and halved cherry tomatoes into the large pan and mix well.
- In the meantime, put the walnuts on a baking tray and toss them in olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
- Bake the walnuts for 8 minutes, ensuring that you shake them halfway through cooking.
- Chop the halloumi into about 6 equally sized soldier-shaped pieces.
- Heat up the small frying pan on a high heat. Use the tongs to fry the halloumi soldiers on each side for 1 minute until a sear mark appears.
- Serve the warm quinoa salad with the halloumi soldiers and toasted walnuts. Bon appétit!
Rosa Morgan
Images courtesy of Rosa Morgan.
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