14 | Bed & Breakfast News | May/June 2011 Poached Breast of Chicken


This sounds a strange combination and I wasn’t sure about a Hollandaise Sauce on chicken, but it’s wonderful for three reasons: it’s easy to make, it’s a one pot recipe and it’s delicious. The secret lies in the stock. As always, it is much better when using homemade stock. I often leave chunks of the meat in my stock which gives the finished dish more flavour, it really doesn’t take much effort to make and is far less salty than stock cubes.


So, the next time you roast a chicken, boil it all up afterwards and freeze in small-ish amounts so you don’t have to use a huge bag of stock each time.


Ingredients (Serves 4):


1 chicken breast per person, sliced into 3 or 4 pieces 200g small potatoes 200ml chicken stock


6 large (sliced) or 10 small whole carrots 4 tablespoons of frozen peas or soya beans A head of broccoli, torn into little florets


Boil the potatoes until just cooked, don’t let them fall apart. Heat the stock until nearly boiling and add the chicken slices, carrots and peas/beans and broccoli. You can add some mushrooms or other vegetables if you want to. I sometimes add asparagus spears.


Simmer for about 25 mins, until the chicken is cooked right through.


Meanwhile make the Hollandaise, and I use John Tovey’s quick version, which has never failed. You can make it minutes and the chicken and veg will wait and keep warm. To serve, put slices of chicken on warm plates (or large bowls are good), arrange the vegetables and pour over a little of the stock, then spoon the Hollandaise over the top.


John Tovey’s quick Hollandaise Sauce:


6 oz (170 g) butter 1 tablespoon wine vinegar 2 tablespoons lemon juice 3 egg yolks


½ teaspoon caster sugar A pinch of salt


Put the butter into a small saucepan and allow it to melt slowly. Place the wine vinegar and lemon juice in another saucepan and bring to the boil. Meanwhile blend the egg yolks, sugar and salt in a liquidizer—then, with the motor still switched on, gradually add the hot lemon juice and vinegar.


When the butter reaches the boil, start to pour this in very slowly in a thin trickle (with the liquidizer motor running all the time) till all the butter is added and the sauce is thickened.


with Vegetables and a Hollandaise Sauce (below) by Lisa Holloway of Compton House, Newark (see cover & p16)


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