I always say that I don’t really enjoy cooking, but thinking about it, I think it’s that I don’t enjoy cooking the same meals over and over again. I quite like trying out new recipes when I have the time, inclination or have been spurred on by someone else to do it. When I received a lovely package of goodies from Bisto recently I left them all sitting on the kitchen worktop for a few days until I had made up my mind about what I wanted to do with them.
Lemon Chicken Risotto
Finally, I decided that I would have a go at a Lemon Chicken Risotto.
Ingredients
1 Bisto Chicken Stock Melt
3 x chicken breasts
2tbsp Vegetable Oil
220g risotto rice
The rind of 1 lemon, grated
75g parmesan, freshly grated
50g rocket, shredded
Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle
Preparation
When it came to the Bisto Stock Melts, I had seen them advertised on the TV but hadn’t actually got around to buying any myself. They were super easy to use although I did mess up slightly with my recipe in that I was trying to follow the instructions on the Bisto Stock Melts box AND the recipe I had chosen which I didn’t twig called for different measurements of ingredients. Nonetheless, I did manage to save the day before the risotto had boiled dry!!
The Bisto Stock Melt easily popped out of the pot and dissolved quickly when stirred into boiling water (unfortunately I deleted the pictures before I had the opportunity to add them to the post). I cooked the chicken breasts in the stock mixture for 7-8 minutes on simmer and then in another pan, poured the vegetable oil, lemon zest and some additional lemon juice too (extra to the recipe) before adding the stock (minus the chicken).
Next, I added the risotto rice, reduced the heat and simmered for 15 minutes stirring occasionally (and checking that the risotto hadn’t boiled dry). For the remaining 5-10 minutes, I added the chopped chicken breast to the pan and simmered until it was all cooked before stirring in the shredded rocket and serving. Finally, I added a couple of sprigs of rocket and a drizzle of olive oil.
The Verdict
Delicious!! This was really easy to prepare the dish, very tasty BUT, I served this up to three adults and there wasn’t nearly enough for my liking so if you are looking to prepare this for a dinner party you might want to increase the ingredients above. I’d say this was just enough for two people but you might want to add something else as a side to it, perhaps some salad or fancy bread?
The stock melts were really easy to use and certainly added to the flavour of the dish. I am now on the lookout for recipes to try the other stock flavours with so any suggestions would be gratefully received, just leave me a comment below. Perhaps you have a link to a recipe you have already tried?
And finally, the other items that were in my lovely parcel from Bisto were some super cute cooking aprons and hats for the children all embroidered with their names. I think you will agree they look every bit the perfect chefs!! They wore them when baking last week and felt very important indeed.
DISCLAIMER: We were sent the Bisto Stock Melts, Risotto Rice, Fresh Garlic and three personalised aprons and hats for the purpose of this post. All words, images and opinions are my own and may not be copied without my permission – although please feel free to use the recipe.