herb and onion poached chicken with spicy orange-blossom honey dijon dressing

I'm not a huge fan of chicken breasts. On the occasion that I order chicken breast out somewhere it's often dry, tough and lacking flavor. I like chicken when it's roasted whole with lots of olive oil and herbs and a dusting of sea salt. Or, cooked for hours in a slow cooker with the bone in until it's ultra tender. I looked online to find out the best way to cook the partially frozen chicken breasts I had on hand, and poaching them was the best way to go. I've poached eggs plenty of times, but I never thought about poaching poultry or meat. It produces fantastic results! The meat cooks slowly in barely simmering broth pulling in moisture and flavors from the liquid. For this one I mixed orange blossom honey with strong dijon mustard, a tiny squirt of sriracha hot sauce and some of the herb and onion broth to make a thin but flavorful sauce. You can also try reducing the broth (boil with lid off for 10 minutes) and then adding a little cornstarch to thicken it up. I served this with a lightly dressed green salad and a sliced baguette with olive oil and herbs for dipping. Enjoy!

Serves 3-4

1 lb of young chicken breasts (I always buy free range chicken, it tastes so much better)

4-5 cups of vegetable broth (I use Better Than Bouillon or vegetable broth powder)

1/2 of a small onion, sliced

3 sprigs of rosemary

1 teaspoon of dried oregano

1 teaspoon of sea salt

1/2 teaspoon of dried lemongrass

1 teaspoon of curry powder

1/2 teaspoon of black peppercorns

3 cloves garlic, crushed

Add everything but the chicken into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes and then reduce to barely a simmer (medium low to low heat).

Cut chicken breasts in half if you need to and then add to broth. Arrange so that the chicken is submerged. Allow to cook with the lid off for 15 minutes.

Now would be a good time to make the sauce

Combine in a small bowl: 1 heaping tablespoon of orange blossom honey (raw is fine), 1 tablespoon of dijon mustard and a squirt sriracha hot sauce (1/2 teaspoon perhaps). Stir until smooth. When chicken is done cooking stir in a teaspoon or two or the broth to thin the sauce out.

Stick a meat thermometer into a larger piece of chicken to check for doneness. You can also just pull it out and cut in half to check. Smaller pieces should be done at this point and can be transferred to a serving dish. If center is still pink cook for 5 more minutes. Do not overcook the chicken. You want the center to be opaque white and moist.

Transfer all chicken to serving dish with some of the onions and rosemary. Drizzle with sauce and serve immediately.