Chicken Tikka, Lentil, Spinach & Naan Salad

Dear reader, 

I am uploading on the same day I cooked, which is new! 

Just as the food is settling, the fresh pictures through which I can smell the smell I smelled only two hours ago, so I decided to get it out of the way and share this recipe with the world as well. 

On pg. 86 of the "Chicken" section, you can find the Chicken Tikka, Lentil, Spinach & Naan Salad which really is unlike any other salad, and you can read below why:

This is what I came up with:

To start off, I would like to say this recipe was so over the top. It took me the whole morning to prepare all the ingredients and to cook it all up, and I am positively done with life. 

The reason being the mango chutney and naan breads. 

Since you cannot buy them pre-made at the supermarket like you can in England I suppose, I had to make my own. 

The naan bread took 3 hours and the mango chutney took around that time too. 

I found the naan bread recipe here: http://reallifedinner.com/how-to-make-naan-bread-step-by-step-instructions-and-pictures/ ...

...and the mango chutney recipe here: http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/homemade_mango_chutney/

If you read above, you will see the preparation time needed for both, and the process, and understand me completely. Once the two were done, I started on everything else (or rather continued).

Before all, I soaked my lentils in hot water as mine were packaged dry, and they don't sell "ready to eat" lentils in Croatia. This then took care of itself.

I like to take care of the meat first because I have a feeling that if I let it sit with the spices, it will absorb them and I will feel them throughout. I set my meat aside to soak, and dealt with all the vegetables. 

I washed and sliced the spring onions, chilli, tomato, coriander, baby spinach, a cucumber and a carrot. 

I then took to the sauce, whizzing coriander stalks, the juice of 1 lemon, yoghurt, cashews, mango chutney and turmeric until smooth and emptying into a little dish. 

My lentils were ready by now, so I added mustard and cumin seeds in a pan with oil, and then the spring onion and chili. I waited until that fried a little and then added in all the lentils, the tomato, (salt and pepper) and a splash of red wine vinegar. I kept that on the heat until it all combined, and then set aside. 

I put my chicken to fry on a tablespoon of oil, on low heat though to control the speed, and during that time I peeled the cucumber and carrot with a speed peeler, sliced the naan, feta and coriander leaves and set them aside for near use. 

After my meat was done, I used the same pan to roast some mushrooms, and while the mushrooms were roasting I sliced the meat too and arranged everything on my grand-aunt's mother platter. 

And voila! 

At first I honestly thought this was just another summery salad recipe with some chicken and bread and sauce, but I was totally wrong. 

This recipe is the right combination of filling but healthy. Because, honestly, I can nibble on some cucumber which is healthy, but it won't fill me up. This recipe contains the meat and bread and lentils to fill you up, alongside the gorgeous veggies which add that much needed balance. The great sauce rounds the meal up, and the side-yoghurt is great for dipping the naan! If you do not own the cookbook, the recipe is as follows:

*Ingredients out* Griddle pan, high heat* Small frying pan, medium-low heat* Liquidizer*

Serves 4, 607 calories

Ingredients

Chicken

2 x 200g skinless chicken breasts

2 heaped tsp Patak's tikka paste

4 chestnut mushrooms

Salad

4 spring onions

1 fresh red chili

1 heaped tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

olive oil

1 x 250g pack of ready-to-eat Puy lentils

1 ripe tomato

red wine vinegar

1 big bunch of fresh coriander

2 lemons

4 tbsp fat-free natural yoghurt

1 heaped tbsp cashew nuts

1 heaped tbsp mango chutney

1 tsp turmeric

2 naan breads

200g baby spinach

1/2 a cucumber

1 carrot

30g feta cheese 

Start cooking 

On a large sheet of greaseproof paper, toss the chicken with salt, pepper and the tikka paste. Fold over the paper, then bash and flatten the chicken to 1,5cm thick with a rolling pin. Place on the hot griddle pan with the halved mushrooms, turning after 3 or 4 minutes, until nicely charred and cooked through. Trim and finely slice the spring onions and half the chili.

Put the mustard and cumin seeds and 2 tablespoons of oil into the frying pan, followed by the sliced spring onion and chili. Tip the lentils into the pan, squash in the tomato and add a punch salt and pepper and a splash of red wine vinegar. Toss occasionally for a couple of minutes, then turn the heat off. Rip the coriander stalks in the liquidizer with the juice of 1 lemon, the yoghurt, cashews, mango chutney and turmeric, then whiz up until smooth. 

Remove the cooked chicken and mushrooms from the griddle and put the naan on the pan. Tip the baby spinach on to a serving board or platter, scatter over the lentils, speed-peel the cucumber and carrot over the top and sprinkle over the mushrooms. Slice the chicken, naan and remaining chili and arrange on top, then crumble over the feta and spoon over the dressing. Finish with the coriander leaves and serve with lemon wedges. 

Note: This recipe was taken straight out of the cookbook, my version is written above. 

Bon Appétit!