I'm not a great fan of the cold and at this time of year, I turn to warming soups and hot bread rolls. I had been stuck in a bit of a soup rut (curried lentil or parsnip soups are my staple diet) so I found the lastest Knorr blogger challenge to be a good way of inspiring me to create something a little different. This warming soup and rolls has a bit of a twist - it is a spicy oriental chicken noodle soup that uses a few of the different flavours of Knorr Flavour Pots, this year's Sauce & Seasoning Product of the Year winner. It was a bit too spicy for Holly, but her older sister very much enjoyed making and eating this soup and bread.
THAI CHICKEN LAKSA with SWEET CHILLI ROLLS (Serves 4-6)
INGREDIENTS
For the bread:
500g strong white flour
1 tsp fast action dried yeast
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
350ml tepid milk or water
1 Knorr Mixed Chillis Flavour Pot
1 tblsp clear honey
For the laksa:
1 tblsp vegetable/sesame oil
1 large chicken breast
1 Knorr Ginger & Lemongrass Flavour Pot
1 small sweet potato
1/2 a head of fennel (you can use 2 sticks of celery as an alternative)
1/2 a butternut squash
1/2 a red onion
1/2 a can coconut milk
1 Knorr Curry Flavour Pot
1 tblsp crunchy peanut butter
1 pint chicken stock (Knorr stock pots work well here too! but I had some homemade stock available)
200g rice noodles
1 tblsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 lime
4 spring onions
A handful of fresh corriander leaves
METHOD
- Make the bread by combining the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a bowl and then slowly adding the warm milk until it forms a soft dough. Place on a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes.
- Make a well in the centre of the dough and place the contents of one Mixed Chillis flavour pot into the hollow. Fold the edges of the dough over carefully and then squish and knead for another 3-5 minutes until all of the chilli mixture is well combined into your dough. Leave the dough in an oiled bowl, somewhere warm (but not hot) for 1.5 hours until it has doubled in size.
- Place the chicken breast on a piece of greaseproof paper or cling film and then spread the contents of the Ginger and Lemongrass Flavour Pot all over it, covering both sides. Leave to marinade for at least 1 hour.
- Once the dough has risen, knock it back by kneading gently for a minute. Break it into 8 equal sized pieces and roll them into neat balls. Lara (5) absolutely loved helping me do this, and between us, we could have taken on Paul Hollywood with our rolling skillz. Place the rolls onto a baking tray (I sprinkled some polenta onto mine to stop the rolls from sticking) and leave to rise for another 30 minutes while you pre-heat the oven to 190 degrees (or a little less for a fan oven).
- Put the rolls in the oven for 15-20 minutes until they are golden brown and sound hollow when you tap the bases.
- As the rolls cool, brush them with a little honey on the top of each roll. The combination of spicy, savoury chilli with the sweet honey is delicious.
- Peel and grate the sweet potato and butternut squash.
- Slice the red onion and fennel (or celery) and fry for 2-3 minutes in a large saucepan with half of the vegetable oil. Add the contents of a Knorr Curry Flavour Pot and stir to coat.
- Add the grated vegetables, soy sauce, sugar, peanut butter and then the stock. I also needed to add about 1 pint of boiled water to fully cover the vegetables.
- Bring to the boil and then simmer for 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the chicken. Fold the paper or cling film over the chicken and bash with a rolling pin until it is flattened. Lara LOVED this!
- Heat the remaining oil in a frying pan and then fry the chicken well on both sides until well-blackened.
- Once fully cooked, place the chicken breast on a chopping board and slice thinly.
- To finish the soup, add the coconut milk and the juice of half the lime. Add the rice noodles and simmer for about 3-5 minutes.
- Serve the noodle soup into bowls and then sprinkle the chicken pieces, spring onions and fresh corriander over the top. Squeeze over the remaining fresh lime for an extra kick!
- Serve the soup with the warm chilli rolls. Nom.
