Would you pre cook, i.e. brown the chicken?

Right, all prepped and in the dish! (Sorry Kitty, all in, nothing to freeze, although I did reduce the sauce quite a bit, and used a can of cherry tomatoes in juice, rather than chopped, rebel that I am!)

So, should I add some parmesan shavings on top of the mozzerella?

When I do it phoenix, I do double the sauce and freeze the other half - takes no longer and an easy meal next time!!

elderly he's not, he's younger than me!
Callistemon Down here we call that a "Non Sequitur"!
OoRoo

Hello all,

Have started prepping this ready for later, recipe says 200g fun of chopped toms, standard tin is 400g!

Guessing that it's supposed to be a recipe for 1!

Will battle on and see how it comes out!

I have recipe a bit like that (minus the stock) - though cooking time is definitely longer, and the chicken is on top, not underneath).

However, my recipe also has potatoes on top of the other ingredients (size-wise, they are like v. small roast potatoes). No need for anything on the side then.

I do a similar thing Phoenix and brown the chicken all over first but it makes a hell of a mess of the hob.i dont flatten the chicken either. I also sprinkle a little parmesan over the top before I put it in the oven.

Baked potatoes and salad with it.

As I'm cooking for 2 with good appetites, I'm doing a chicken breast each. Any even if it was only 1 breast, it would have to be a very flat chested chicken to have a breast that small!

I would think with as small a piece of chicken as the recipe calls for and then it being flattened, browning would possibly cause it to be a little dry - even with a sauce. For this recipe I would not bother browning it.
The chicken breasts I've been buying weigh about 500 grams each.

Nigella brines her turkey in a bucket.
I've followed her recipe before now, well loosely not absolutely.

Chewbacca

Doesn't that make it very salty Lucca?

I rinse it and pat with kitchen towel. So no not that I’ve noticed. I think they do that a lot in America?

A belated but very warm welcome back Phoenix.

I’d definitely brown it, only because 20 minutes seems too little time.

I would probably serve it with rice, of any hue.

soadapop do I dare ask why?

Thank you to all who have posted "welcome" messages! Very much appreciated!

So, another question, if you were cooking that, what would you put in the side?

I'm thinking of salad and garlic bread (the very phrase "garlic bread" makes me think of Peter Kay!) but any suggestions welcome.

Welcome back Phoenix you have been missed

I'm not allowed anywhere near the chicken so can't help with that. Sorry.

Hi Phoenix I would probably sear the chicken first.

We have missed you

elderly he's not, he's younger than me!

Chewbacca

Doesn't that make it very salty Lucca?

I've had brined turkey, cooked by an elderly man from Eastern Europe, so I don't know if it's a Balkan recipe. It was tender and delicious.

I might not brown it phoenix, if you're cooking it in sauce and putting mozzarella on top of it it too, as you won't see that the chicken hasn't been browned.

Roasting is a form of browning. If the skin is subject to high temperatures and a drying environment, then it will go brown, as it starts to heat up enough to char.

Actually, about the only thing I like about chicken is the lovely crispy brown skin on the breast and legs on the roast bird.

But M0nica when I roast a chicken, the skin always comes out brown (and crispy!) I never bother browning for that?

(Grandmabatty thank you)

It's good to have you back Phoenix. You've been missed. I would brown the chicken first as I prefer the colour.

I rarely brown chicken. What for? You cannot do it to seal the meat and stop the juices escaping because if you could (and you can't) and did, the chicken piece would explode as the liquid in the chicken expanded as it heated up and posssibly reached steam heat.

The idea of browning is to caramelise the liquids on the outside and enhance the surface flavour. Fine if you are cooking a steak but in a recipe like this as soon as you pour the tomatoes over the chicken and start heating it the tomatoes wetten and then dissolve the caramelised surface and the concentrated floavour just becomes part of the sauce.

Brown the skin when roasting, it enhances the visual appeal of the chicken, but otherwise don't bother.

Doesn't that make it very salty Lucca?

Missed you phoenix
Good to have you back.
?
I always used to ‘brown meat’ first but these last few months haven’t bothered to be honest.
Tastes just as good (eating with our eyes closed).
#lazygran

I have only recently discovered “brining” chicken - which sounds like a very posh person saying “browning “ - but it’s a revelation for making things like chicken in breadcrumbs tender.
Ben tornata Phoenix.