The best thing about this casserole is that you can use whatever vegetables you have on hand. The only thing to remember is that if you are using soft or leafy vegetables like mushrooms or silverbeet, add them to the pot for the last 10 minutes of the cooking process so you don’t overcook them.
Serves 4 – 6
What you need
- 4 TBLS olive oil
- 8 pieces of skinless chicken thigh fillets (you can use chicken breast fillets but they tend to dry out)
- 3 medium fresh ripe tomatoes (or ½ tin of organic tomatoes – chopped)
- 1 leek (use the white part – you could use the green part in stock) or 1 onion chopped
- 1 – 2 medium carrots
- 2 medium waxy potatoes
- 1 eggplant (aubergine)
- 2 TBLS continental parsley (washed and finely chopped)
- Sea Salt and freshly ground pepper
What to do
Trim any fat and cut chicken fillets in half.
Cut the tomatoes in half and grate into a bowl, discard the skin.
Slice the leek lengthwise and run water through to remove any dirt, then chop finely.
Peel and chop the carrots into 4cm pieces.
Peel and chop potato into 6cm chunks.
Wash eggplant (aubergine) and cut into 6cm chunks.
Heat olive oil in a pot on a medium heat.
Add chicken and brown on all sides (put lid on as the oil will splatter)
Turn heat to low and add the leek. Cook for 5 -8 minutes until leek softens, but does not brown.
Add carrots, potatoes and tomatoes, then add enough boiling water to just cover the chicken – stir through.
Season with salt and pepper.
Turn up heat until it starts to boil, then turn down to a simmer. Put on the lid and cook for 20 minutes.
Remove the lid, turn up the heat to medium/high, add the eggplant and stir through. Cook for further 15 minutes, or until the liquid reduces to a sauce consistency and the vegetables have cooked through.
Add the parsley, stir stir through.
Serve with a bowl of crisp Baby Leaves and Herb Salad and crusty sourdough bread to mop up the sauce.
Meatballs and Muffins 