Almond Milk and Tarragon Poached Chicken and Farro Salad
Photography by Manja Wachsmuth.
Poaching chicken in milk leaves it silky and tender. Using almond milk imparts a lovely nutty flavour and complements the chewy farro salad.
Serves: 6-8
INGREDIENTS
Poached chicken
3 cups almond milk
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 large stem of fresh tarragon
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
4 chicken breasts, skin on
Salad
1 cup farro, rinsed and drained
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
300-gram jar roasted artichokes, drained
100 grams snow peas, blanched
200 grams slim green beans, blanched
sea salt and ground pepper
⅓ cup spicy rockmelon seeds (I used Tio Pablo)
2 tablespoons fresh tarragon leaves, optional
METHOD
Chicken: Put all the poaching ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low and cook very gently for 15 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked, turning the breasts over halfway through cooking. Don’t let the milk boil or it will curdle and the chicken will be tough. Cooking time will depend on the size of the chicken breasts.
Transfer the chicken and the bay leaves to a dish along with 1 cup of the liquid and cool. Discard the remaining liquid or freeze and use for a soup base.
Salad: Cook the farro in boiling water until just tender. Drain and refresh under cold water, then drain well again. Place in a large bowl and toss with the oil and vinegar and season generously.
To serve: Add all the remaining salad ingredients to the farro and gently combine.
Remove the skin and slice the chicken. Arrange on a large serving platter. Tuck in the bay leaves and spoon over some of the almond milk.
Add the farro salad and top with extra rockmelon seeds and chopped fresh tarragon leaves, if using.

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