1.1 lbs chicken breast, boneless and skinless
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon thyme
1 bunch green onions, about 5-6
14 oz ripe apricots, about 10-12 small ones
zest of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ -1 tablespoon granulated sugar
½ cup chicken or vegetable stock
1 heaped teaspoon cornstarch
2-3 teaspoons cold water
1 bunch parsley
a few sprigs fresh thyme, optional
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Chop the chicken breasts into mouth-sized pieces. Chop the onions into rings. Zest the lemon. Remove the stone from the apricots and slice each apricot half into 2-3 wedges, depending on their size. Heat the oil in a large pan/stewing pan and fry the chicken pieces until lightly golden on all sides but not yet cooked through about 4-5 minutes. Sprinkle the chicken with the dried thyme and add the green onions, apricot wedges, lemon zest, 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice, ½ tablespoon of the sugar, and stock. Stir carefully, cover the pan, bring to a boil and cook for about 7-8 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the apricots are tender but not completely mushy. If you would like the sauce to be thicker, mix together the cornstarch with about 2 teaspoons cold water, the slurry should be thick yet pourable. Whisk the slurry into the sauce and let bubble a couple of times until the sauce thickens slightly. Taste the apricot chicken and add more sugar or lemon juice to your liking. The dish should taste sweet-sour. Add salt and pepper to taste. Carefully stir in the chopped herbs and serve with rice.
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