Don't you love recipes where everything is cooked all at once, in one pot? Well, this is one of those all-in-one meals, except it's made in the Thermomix, not a pot - which makes it even better because you can do three or four different things at once! So while the sauce is cooking in the jug, the coconut rice is steaming in the basket above it, and the chicken and veges in the Varoma tray on top! This is one of our favourite quick-and-easy meals... when I don't feel like cooking, I can have this on the table in half an hour. And everyone loves it :) (Adapted from the Chicken and Cashews recipe in the Thermomix Everyday Cookbook - but with my coconut satay sauce!)
The first 3 steps, marinating the chicken, can be done ahead of time for more flavour - but if you're doing it at the last minute like I usually am, don't worry, it still tastes good!
1. Cut chicken into smallish cubes (about 1.5cm square) or slices and place in a bowl:
- 300g - 400g chicken breasts or thighs
2. Chop in Thermomix bowl for 5 seconds, speed 7:
- 1-2 cloves garlic
- 1-2 cms fresh ginger
Scrape out with spatula and mix with chicken in bowl. (Don't wash out Thermomix bowl.)
3. Add to chicken, mix in, cover, and set aside:
- a couple of tablespoons of tamari or soy sauce
- a splash of sesame oil
4. Pour into Thermomix bowl:
- 450g coconut cream (1 tin)
- 750g water
5. Sit lid on top of jug, and rice basket on top of lid. Set scales and weigh rice into basket:
- 400g basmati rice (or less if you don't want that much)
Remove basket and lid, rinse rice under tap (in basket), place basket in jug, then replace lid and lock into place.
6. Place Varoma tray on top of lid, tip chicken into it and spread out so there's holes open for the steam to come through. Start cooking at Varoma temperature, 20 minutes, speed 4.
7. Meanwhile, chop up the veges and place them into the Varoma as it's heating up. I start chopping the harder veges first and put them in as I get them chopped, leaving the ones like snow peas, capsicum and shallots until the end. Make sure there's a hole in the middle for the steam to get through. Here's a list of suggested veges - use what you've got:
- some thin wedges of onion
- 2 stalks of celery, leaves removed, thinly sliced
- 2 carrots, thinly sliced
- broccoli, small pieces
- green beans
- chinese cabbage, thinly sliced
- boy choy, thinly sliced
- red (and/or green) capsicum, thinly sliced
- snow peas
- shallots, sliced and sprinkled on top
8. Sprinkle over the top of the veges:
- some sesame seeds
- a handful of cashews (roasted or raw)
- a dash of sesame oil
- a dash of tamari (or soy sauce)
9. When the time's up, remove the rice (placing in the Thermoserver to keep warm), and stir the chicken and veges, breaking the chicken apart and making sure there are holes unblocked for the steam to get through. Cook for another 5 or 10 minutes on Varoma temperature, speed 2, checking that the chicken is cooked through. You may need to add a little more water if there's not much left in the bowl. Once cooked, remove Varoma tray while you finish the sauce. (Tip: You can take the lid off the Thermoserver with the rice in it, and sit the Varoma tray on top so they both stay warm.)
10. To the juices and coconut cream left in the bowl, add the following ingredients and blend on speed 9 for 1 minute:
- a couple of handfuls of raw cashews
- 1 inch of fresh red chilli (or more if you like it hotter)
- a good handful of fresh parsley or coriander
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 inch of fresh ginger
- a couple of tablespoons of tamari (or soy sauce)
- a tablespoon of chicken stock paste (or vege stock paste)
(I don't measure - just chuck in what you think, blend it, taste it, and adjust if necessary!)
Serve immediately - rice, chicken and veges with cashews on top, and sauce drizzled over liberally!
Hope you like it! :)
