Tricolour Chicken Parcel

Chicken parcel

This is a mid week favourite in our house. It’s a combination of fantastic flavours that you know are going to produce a great meal. Cooking the chicken in a paper parcel ensures all the flavours are locked in. It’s also a very forgiving way of cooking as the chicken can sit in the oven and keep warm for 10 - 20 minutes without drying out.

Serves 4

Ingredients

8 vine tomatoes

4 garlic cloves chopped or crushed

16 pitted black olives

1 handful of basil

4 skinless and bone removed chicken breasts

salt and pepper

zest of a lemon

100ml dry white wine

Here’s how

Pre heat the oven to 200c/400f/gas mark 6

Cut 4 squares of baking parchment approx 50 cm square and lay them on a work surface.

Pour into a bowl 2\3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil, add the chopped garlic and the lemon zest.

Cut the tomatoes into 1/4’s and add to the bowl, followed by the pitted olives and chopped basil.

Season with plenty of salt and pepper then mix together.

Divide the mixture between each of the 4 sheets of parchment and place it in the middle of each sheet.

Using a sharp knife make small cuts into the chicken about 1/2cm deep, this will allow lots of flavour to absorb into the meat and help speed up the cooking process.

Lay the chicken breast on top of each pile of tomatoes.

Add a splash of white wine over the top of each chicken breast and season with salt and pepper

Fold up the paper to create parcels and transfer them to a large baking tray

Cook in the oven for approximately 25-30 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.