Donna Hay is always raving about her Chilli Jam recipe and now I know why!  It was super simple to make, can be used multiple ways and was incredibly tasty.  Sticky Chilli jam chicken fillets sat proudly on top of a refreshing glass noodle, cucumber and snow pea salad that was totally bought to life with a creamy coconut and zesty lime dressing.  Fabulous mid week fare.

Prep time:  30  Minutes               Cooking time:  30-35  Minutes               $$ Medium Budget

Serves 4

2/3 of a cup of Asian Chilli Jam (see link below), or you can use store bought (won’t be as yum though)

4 chicken breast fillets, lightly scored on the diagonal

3 portions of rice vermicelli noodles*

1 lebanese cucumber, halved & deseeded and sliced thinly on the diagonal

250gm of snow peas, topped and finely julienned

1/2 a red onion, thinly sliced top to bottom

1 cup of mint leaves

1 cup of coriander leaves

1/4 cup of granulated peanuts, toasted until golden in a dry pan

For the dressing:

2/3 cup of coconut cream

1 tbs of fish sauce

Juice of 1 lime

1 tbs of caster sugar

Pre heat the oven to 200°C.

Place the scored chicken breasts on a lined baking tray and dollop a table spoon of the chilli jam on top of each one, making sure it gets into the little score lines.  Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes, basting with the remaining chilli jam at the half way mark, until cooked through.

Place the vermicelli noodles in large bowl of cold water and soak for approximately 8 minutes or until they can be pulled apart.

While the noodles are soaking, combine the coconut cream, fish sauce, lime juice and caster sugar in a small bowl and whisk to combine.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, pour enough boiling water in to cover the snow peas and blanch for about 40 seconds.  Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process and then drain again.  Add the cucumber, red onion, coriander and mint leaves and toss lightly.

Remove the chicken from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes.  Slice each breast about 1.5cm apart of the diagonal.

Drain the noodles and cover them with boiling water for approximately 30 seconds to soften.  Drain, rinse with cold water and add them to the salad.  Toss to combine.

Divide the noodle salad between four serving bowls and drizzle over a couple of tablespoons of the dressing.  Place the chicken on top, spooning over any remaining chilli jam.  Drizzle over a little more coconut dressing and top with a sprinkle of roasted peanuts and serve.

*Rice vermicelli can be found in the Asian section of the supermarket.  They can come in individual portions or packs of four.  Three portions is plenty for four people.

http://emsfoodforfriends.com.au/donna-hays-asian-chilli-jam/