Little fishes 2 / Petits poissons : le retour

Here goes the Oscar speech: 

I'd like to say thank you to a good friend's dad for giving us these delicious fresh fishies, thanks to the good friend for gutting them as that is a skill I am yet to master, and finally thank you to Cheri for cooking the fish to perfection! 

Eating fish whole is something relatively new to me. I'm a little bit ashamed to say it, but up until this year all fish cooked by my greedy hands had already been gutted, filleted and de-boned. However, I just couldn't say no to these little beauties, especially saying as fish is something that is becoming ridiculously expensive. Cooking the fish whole stops it from drying out and keeps all of the flavours intact. However, it does mean having to battle with the bones which can be a little irritating, especially when one gets lodged in your throat. A bit of care and patience is all it takes. 

I decided to accompany Cheri's papillotes with some curried courgettes. This is a quick and easy side-dish that goes well with white meats or fish. For four people you'll need one large courgette. If you're dining solo or cooking for two, freeze the remaining courgette slices for up to three months. Fry off in a little olive oil until soft, add a couple of spoons of crème fraîche, and then stir in whatever spices you fancy. I chose to put in some medium curry powder, groud cumin, fresh coriander, and a good dose of turmeric to give a nice colour to the veggies. Fry over a medium heat for about 20 minutes, or until the courgettes are soft and melt in the mouth. 

Chicken in a bag / Les papillotes de poulet

Nothing makes me think more of home than a good old roast dinner, lovingly cooked by my Mam. When I'm feeling homesick I like to give the Sunday lunch a try but whereas Mam's chicken is always lovely and juicy, mine has the unfortunate habit of turning out dry. 

I was therefore intrigued to see a new product in the supermarket designed to overcome this problem: Les papillotes de poulet, or chicken in a bag. 

The magic bag

There are a variety of flavours available (lemon and herb, tarragon and garlic) but I opted for tomato and paprika, knowing that Cheri likes a bit of spice. The instructions are clear and simple: Unfold the plastic sachet and pop in your chicken, then add the packet contents and a couple of soup spoons of water. Close up the bag and pop in the oven for approximately 1 hour 30 depending on the size of the bird.

Ready for the oven!

Cooking time over, it was time to see the results! Even before taking the chicken out of the oven, an inviting smell of roasted tomatoes managed to coax Cheri down from the study. And taste-wise? I have to say I'm impressed! The chicken was well-cooked, moist and juicy, and the mixture of paprika and tomato made a lovely jus for our mashed potatoes. The fact that you only add water (no oil or butter) to the chicken is also a plus.

The only down-side is that the sachets are quite pricey, on average at least 1 euro 50, but the results are worth it, especially if you only cook a roast chicken from time to time. 

The only test that remains will be to cook this for my Mam the next time she comes over!