RECIPE: Chicken satay with fragrant rice and butternut squash

After taking a break over the summer, for family reasons, I'm back with a new series of recipes for Farmers Choice who deliver a wonderful range of free range and responsibly sourced produce. Today I have an Asian style meal for you. Please don't be put off by the long recipe - each stage is easy and  lots of the preparation can be done in advance.

Chicken satay with fragrant rice and butternut squash (serves 4)

Satay literally means “three pieces” and the meat should be cut into bite sized pieces and three placed on each stick,  but long, thin strips of chicken are often easier to handle and cook. Satay is a street food and isn’t usually served alongside rice and a vegetable like this, but I think it is a delicious part of a main meal and served like this, makes a great Indonesian style (just  style, I’m not making any claims to be authentic!!!) feast.

For the chicken – start to prepare 1-2 hours in advance

 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

1 tbs dark soy sauce
1 tsp Hampshire honey
½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp rapeseed oil
approx. 12-16  wooden  medium length skewers or satay sticks

 Soak the sticks  in water while marinating chicken.

Mix the soy sauce, honey, oil and spices together.

Cut  the chicken into long, thin strips and place in the marinade. Leave for 1-2 hours.

10-15 minutes before the rice and squash are ready, thread onto the soaked skewers and grill for about 5 minutes on each side until cooked right through.

 

 

For the sauce  - can be made in advance (if you promise not to eat it before the meal is ready!)

2 heaped tablespoons smooth peanut butter

1 tbs dark soy sauce
1 tsp Hampshire Honey
½ tsp dried crushed red chilli flakes (optional)
juice of 1 lime
200 ml water

Heat all ingredients together, stirring constantly. As it comes close to boiling, it will appear to curdle, but just keep stirring and after a few seconds of boiling it will come together to form a smooth paste. Set aside to cool. This makes a very thick sauce – you can thin it down with water or coconut milk if you prefer it thinner. We love a really thick sauce so you can scoop up lots of it when you dip the satay into it!

For  the squash

 ½ medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into roughly 2cm cubes

1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1cm piece of fresh ginger, grated
1 red chilli, finely sliced
1 tsp Hampshire Honey
1 small (150ml) can coconut milk
a little rapeseed oil
salt

Heat a drizzle of oil in the bottom of a pan with a well fitting lid. Gently fry the onion until softened, then stir in the squash, ginger and chilli and continue to cook, stirring frequently, for 3 or 4 minutes. Mix in the honey, coconut milk and salt to taste, and simmer for 20-25 minutes until squash is tender. Stir frequently and keep an eye on the level of the liquid; there should be a very small amount left when the squash is tender, so top up with a little hot water if it starts to look too dry.

 

For the rice:

 Simply cook the rice in your favourite way (I like to use an electric rice boiler) but for each 4 portions add 1 stalk of crushed lemongrass, 1 star anise and 2 bayleaves to the water before you start to cook.

 Serve the rice and squash topped with the grilled sticks of chicken and a small bowl of sauce for dipping the chicken in.

This makes a complete meal, but you can make it into a real feast by adding some extra treats – prawn crackers, raw or fried bananas, salted peanuts or cashews, sliced boiled eggs, shredded cucumber, chunks of fresh pineapple…… I’ll have to stop here, I’m getting too hungry!