Delicious - March 2011 - Five-spice Chicken & Cucumber Banh Mi

Oh dear, I cannot believe how long it has been since I have updated my lovely little blog. Spend some time in the doldrums and the sprinkle liberally with spending time with a new friend and other things seem to fall by the way side. I have even been doing a lot of cooking. At least not stuff for my blog, to don't want to be blogging about spaghetti with grated parmesan, garlic olive oil and shredded basil... **oops** Oh and there have been plenty of sandwiches and a few convenience meals from the supermarket freezer section, none of which have been very nice. 


It hasn't all been bad though. This month's Delicious. magazine had some fantastic recipes in it. The first that I wanted to make was Rachel Allen's Slow-roasted Ginger & Citrus Shoulder of Pork. The recipe is a sweet citrusy marinade with ground star anise in there. It is marinaded overnight and then roasted for 12 hours. Instead of a bone-in shoulder, I used boneless and cooked for 10 hours. The flavour was fabulous but it was over cooked. Next time I would probably reduce the temperature further and probably reduce the cooking time a bit more. The crackling didn't crackly but I never seem to have any luck with crackling if the skin has been marinaded. It was find the way it was though. 


From this issue I also made David Prior's Five-spice Chicken & Cucumber Banh Mi. I followed the recipe almost exactly. The only thing I did differently was to marinade the chicken overnight, oh and I pan fried rather than grilled the chicken. This meal was so wonderful. Just perfect for a special lunch time meal. There was so much flavour in the chicken and it all combined perfectly. Don't skimp on the mayonnaise though. I used Neil Perry's mayo, my go to for bought mayonnaise now. I highly recommend this. It is easy to make. It is flavoursome just a little bit fancy. Oh and the left over chicken meat was fabulous in salads. 

Five-spice chicken & cucumber banh mi 

Serves 6

• 3/4 cup (165g) caster sugar 
• 3/4 cup (185ml) white vinegar 
• 3 carrots, cut into thin matchsticks or grated 
• 900g skinless chicken thigh fillets 
• 1/2 cup (150g) whole-egg mayonnaise 
• 2 baguettes, cut into thirds, split 
• 2 long red chillies, seeds removed, cut into thin strips 
• 1 telegraph cucumber, thinly sliced into ribbons
• 1/2 red onion, very thinly sliced 
• Baby rocket, or other salad greens

Marinade 

• 1/4 cup (60ml) soy sauce 
• 5 garlic cloves, finely chopped 
• 4 eschalots, finely chopped 
• 2 tbs fish sauce 
• 1 tbs caster sugar 
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp five-spice powder

Method: 

• Combine sugar, vinegar and 1/2 tsp salt in a bowl, stirring until sugar and salt dissolve. Add carrots and toss to coat. Stand at room temperature for at least 2 hours or overnight. Drain. 
• Combine all the marinade ingredients together in a large bow. Add chicken, turning to coat. Cover and marinate in the fridge for 1 1/2 hours or overnight. 
• Preheat frying pan to medium-high. Remove chicken from marinade and pan-fry, in batches, for 6-8 minutes, turning, until cooked through. Slice on an angle and keep warm. 
• Spread mayonnaise on bottom half of baguettes, then fill with carrot, chilli, cucumber, chicken, onion and rocket. Serve immediately.