Salad of roast free range chicken, cavolo nero, parmesan, sour dough croutons and soft poached egg

Fiona Anderson

Of all the things we grow here at Riverstone, the one plant we are most asked about in the garden is cavolo nero. With its striking plumage of dark green crinkled leaves it certainly stands out. We have been growing it ever since the restaurant opened eight years ago. Firm in texture, the leaves are however remarkably tender, either quickly blanched or stir-fried with a little olive oil and younger leaves can be chopped into salads raw.

Ingredients

2	Chicken breasts, skin on (Main)
30 ml	Olive oil
3	Anchovy fillets, quality, finely chopped
1	Garlic clove, crushed
¼ cup	Mayonnaise
6 leaves	Cavolo nero, large ones with stems removed, roughly chopped (Main)
¼	Red onions, finely sliced
2	Spring onions, finely sliced
½ cup	Flat leaf (Italian) parsley, picked
¼ cup	Parmesan cheese, finely grated, plus extra for serving
2 cups	Sourdough bread, finely sliced into croutons, toasted (Main)
2	Eggs, soft poached, free-range (Main)
1 drizzle	Extra virgin olive oil, for serving

Directions

1. Heat oven to 200C. Season chicken with a little salt and pepper and place, skin side down, into a hot, heavy based ovenproof frying pan with the olive oil. Fry until the skin is nicely coloured, then place into oven and roast for 5 to 6 minutes or until the chicken is almost cooked. Remove from oven, turn the chicken breasts over and allow to rest for at least 5 minutes. The heat remaining in the frying pan will complete the cooking process.
2. In a large bowl mix the anchovies, garlic and mayonnaise. Add the cavolo nero, red onion, spring onions, parsley, parmesan and sour dough croutons to the bowl and toss to combine.
3. Divide between 2 plates. Place soft poached eggs into a small pot of boiling water to bring back up to temperature before draining and placing on top of the salad. Sprinkle with a little extra parmesan and a good drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Serve immediately.