Chicken, peach and Feta salad

This very simple salad is a very satisfying dish in its own right. It is also a somewhat healthy salad that doesn’t taste as if you are “missing out” on foodie delights – a bonus in my book!

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This salad is packed with flavours that complement each other beautifully:

• juicy ripe peaches
• salty Feta
• Serrano ham
• peppery wild rocket
• lightly poached chicken breast

The poaching of the raw chicken breasts ensures succulence rather than any hint of dryness. Poaching in stock gives a good flavour to the chicken: I often freeze the poaching liquid to use at a later time for a gravy or a risotto.

The juice from the peaches is quite heavenly as it mingles with the other ingredients, giving a very refreshing feel to each mouthful: but take a forkful with a little of each ingredient and you have a real flavour explosion.

A light dressing

When I make this I vary between a lemony vinaigrette dressing and a minty crème fraîche dressing.

I also keep a couple of peach slices and the remains of the peaches around the stone a little squeeze to get more of the juice to add to the dressing.

Low fat, high flavour!

Lower fat dishes really do need to taste great and I think this salad delivers on that score.

Recipe: chicken, peach & Feta salad – serves 2

Salad

• 1 large uncooked chicken breast or 2 uncooked thighs
• about 200ml stock (or use water flavoured with salt, pepper and a few fresh herbs such as bay, rosemary and/or thyme)
• a couple of generous handfuls of wild rocket (or any salad leaves)
• 2-3 strips of Serrano or Parma ham, trimmed of excess fat and torn into small pieces
• 2-3 ripe peaches, sliced (peeled or unpeeled) or use tinned peach slices
• about 80g Feta cheese, cut into small cubes
• a handful of toasted pine nuts or walnuts, optional

Dressing

• about 3 tablespoons crème fraîche or plain yoghurt
• a little of the peach juice, squeezed from a couple of slices any peach off-cuts
• 1-2 teaspoons of barbecue, harissa or chipotle chilli sauce
• a few fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper

NB: for a vinaigrette dressing, use the juice of a small lemon, 3-4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, a little Dijon mustard, a little crushed garlic and seasoning)

(1) To poach the chicken: put the stock in a pan and bring to a gentle simmer. Add the chicken and cook gently for about 15 minutes. Remove from the liquid and place on a plate, and set aside to cool. Slice thinly or cut into chunks – if using chicken thighs on the bone, peel off the cooked meat from the bone.
NB: the chicken can be poached the day before and left in the fridge until using. You should skip the poaching if the chicken is already cooked. 

(2) Add the remaining salad ingredients to a serving bowl, along with the cool chicken pieces.

(3) Put the dressing ingredients into a clean jar and place the lid on firmly. Shake well. Taste, and add more seasoning or oil if you feel it needs it.

(4) Spoon the dressing over the salad or gently mix in. Enjoy!

Delicious variations for this salad

– Use ready-cooked chicken or chicken left from a roast or BBQ – just omit the poaching stage.

– If you do not eat chicken and ham, you can simply leave them out as the peach and Feta salad itself is delicious.

– If you are not a fan of Feta, you can use chunks of halloumi – this is lovely used raw but it is even nicer if pan-fried lightly for a few minutes to go golden-brown.

– You can use tinned peaches, using a little of the juice in the tin in the dressing. With tinned peaches in particular I like to lightly pan-fry them with just a touch of oil for 3-4 minutes each side to get them a little charred first.

– Use chunks of peeled melon for added freshness and juicy bursts

– Scatter over some fresh pomegranate seeds for added flavour, texture and colour.

– If you fancy a different dressing, simply mix peach juice (if using tinned peaches) with pomegranate molasses, mint leaves and seasoning. Proportion-wise, I would start with roughly 4 parts peach juice to 1 part pomegranate molasses.

Another salad treat: panzanella

One of my favourite salads to eat is panzanella: garlicky, tomatoey soaked bread with roasted tomatoes, peppers, basil, capers…….seriously it is TO DIE FOR!

So why not try my version on this classic salad. My recipe can be found here.