All great ideas are inspired by a muse, sometimes that muse is less than motivational. Your work week has been hectic, you’re tired and you’re hungry; the last thing you want to do when you get home is think up a culinary masterpiece. You want something simple, but delicious, perhaps with some leftovers for your lunch the next day.
Why not add a twist to something you’ve created before? All the greats do it, like a squeeze of lime in your rum and coke or the iPhone 6s to the iPhone 6 just 1 month after I upgrade my phone… just add a new feature.
You usually use regular carrots? Try the purple kind. It’s your custom to boil broccoli? Try steaming mustard greens. You like button mushrooms? You’ll love oyster mushrooms! Garlic butter is your jam? Have a go at infusing it with sage. Treat your cuisine like you do your love life; if it’s tired and boring, spice it up!
Add something new to an old favourite with The Culinary Barbarian’s, Wild Mushroom and Chicken Pasta with Crispy Sage and Zucchini.
Ingredients:
150g Oyster Mushrooms, sliced (reserve 2 four un-sliced for garnish)
150g sliced portabella mushrooms
500g chicken thighs, sliced 1.5 cm by 2cm thick
1 large Spanish onion, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, diced
1 zucchini, shredded or spiralled
300ml, pouring cream
500g, pasta (your choice, I choose shells)
1 bunch of sage, stalks removed
1 bunch marjoram, pulled from stalks
50g butter, for frying
50g olive oil for frying
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup white wine
Salt and pepper to taste.
1 tbsp plain flour
Method:
- Boil a large pot of water on the stove and pre-cook the pasta
- In a small omelette pan, melt the butter and toss in sage leaves and, fry until sage becomes crispy and the butter is aromatic. With tongs, remove and drain on paper towel.
- Toss in garnish oyster mushrooms and brown both sides and drain on paper towel.
- Transfer the sage infused butter t a large frypan and crank up the gas. Add a good lug of olive oil and toss in the marjoram and fry for a few seconds before adding the chicken and fry until browned all over and remove with a slotted spoon. Reserve.
- Sautee the onions, garlic and mushrooms until brown all over, tossing regularly.
- Stir the flour into the stock, this will prevent the cream from later splitting
- Deglaze the pan with the stock and the wine and stock and simmer until reduced by ½. Add the cream and chicken and stir through and reduce by ¼, stirring constantly. Add a hand full of parmesan and toss through.
- When the pasta is ready, place the zucchini into a large colander and drain the pasta over the zucchini. Once steam dry, add the pasta and zucchini back to the pot and pour the pasta sauce over the top and stir through.
- Garnish with crispy sage an sautéed oyster mushrooms
