At the grocery store, you’d need an entire chicken to cover 3lbs, but the huge, juicy chickens from Peregrine Farm are big enough that we only needed 1/2 of a chicken!
Eggplant Chutney
This is the most unique and challenging part of the meal to prepare. A zesty dish hailing from the Indian subcontinent, topped with a refreshing blanched bean salad.
Do note that eggplant has a very interesting flavour and may not be everyone’s cup of tea.
For the Chutney, gather these ingredients:
Blanched Bean Salad
Fold together the following ingredients in a large bowl:
Method
1. Prepare the eggplant by quartering it lengthwise and slicing each quarter into thick rounds on the diagonal. Chop the red onion into long, thin strips.
2.Heat half the olive oil in a large saucepan and fry the onions until softened. Toss in the spices and continue to cook, stirring for 1 minute or until fragrant. Then stir in the tomato paste and allow the flavours to get to know each other for a few more seconds.
3.Pour in the crushed tomatoes, sugar, and vinegar and cook the mixture until reduced and jam-like before gently stirring in the seeded mustard. Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a large frying pan and pan-fry the eggplant slices until golden all over.
4. Once fried, slide the eggplant into the spiced tomato sauce, stir to coat each slice evenly, and cook over low heat for 2 minutes. Season to taste.
5.Prepare the blanched bean salad. (I hope you blanched your beans and toasted your almonds ahead of time!)
6.To plate the chutney, scoop a comfortable helping onto the plate and top with the bean salad, sprinkling with more toasted almonds and feta to your liking. I propped a single leaf of mint on top as a final touch.
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