Lemongrass & Lime Chicken Watercress Salad

Recipe by Suze Morrison, Gourmet Glow | Photography by Lara Jane Thorpe

Ingredients:

6 Chicken Thighs, bone in, skin on

1 tsp Coconut Oil

½ tsp salt

1 Lime, juice & zest

3 Cloves Garlic, minced

1 thumb Ginger, minced

2 Green Finger Chillies, finely sliced

4 Lemongrass stalks, bashed

3 Lime Leaves, chiffonade

1 Tin Full Fat Coconut Milk

Salt to Season

2 Carrots, julienne

1 Red Onion, finely sliced

3 Spring Onions, finely sliced

½ Cucumber, julienne

2 Sour Eating Apples, julienne, stored in the lime juice.

100g Frozen Peas, defrosted

200g Watercress

Oil for Deep frying

Coconut Flakes to serve

1 tbsp Sambal Oelek (or chilli paste)

1 Lime, juiced

1 tbsp Soy Sauce

1 tbsp Oil

For the dressing, combine all the ingredients in a jar and shake to combine. Set aside.
For the crispy onions, heat the oil for deep frying in a pan, no more than 2/3 full, to 180C. Fry the onions for 2-3 minutes or until crisp and golden. Strain on kitchen paper and sprinkle with salt to stay crisp. Store in an airtight container.
Sprinkle the flesh of the chicken with ½ tsp salt and the lime zest. Set aside for 30 minutes to tenderise.
Heat the oil for the chicken in a large pan. Add the chicken skin side down and brown for 4-5 minutes to render out any fat. Flip the chicken over, add the garlic, ginger, chillies, lemongrass and lime leaves and cook 30 seconds more.
Pour over the coconut milk and reduce to a simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the flesh is cooked through. Remove from the heat and allow to cool in the liquid.
Once cool enough to handle, remove the skin and bones and shred the meat. Strain the sauce through a sieve, discard the solids and retain the juice.
To assemble, mix the spring onion, cucumber, apple, peas, carrot and watercress in a bowl. Mix with 4 tbsp of the dressing. Top with the shredded chicken, a few spoonfuls of coconut sauce, crispy onions and coconut flakes.