Thar she blows - Lentil and Chicken Salad

Necessity is the mother of invention.

It's one of those sayings that don't really mean very much until it happens to you.  Well, it happened to me...

Nothing spectacular, mind you. No 'Eureka' moment.  It's just that my oven blew up on the weekend.  I'd just finished baking ANZAC biscuits and kept the oven on so that I could throw a little lamb roast in later.
While the lamb was cooking, there was a funny smell of burning rubber, so I turned the oven off.  The lamb wasn't ready yet.
Then, there was a *POOF!*.  Or, maybe a **pooompf!** and smoke started coming out of the oven.  Dreading the repair bill...

I've been without an oven since, so I've had warm chicken and lentil salad for dinner the last few nights. No baking needed.

It's a fantastic recipe, and very economical.  I didn't invent this dish, but I certainly need it right now.


Warm Chicken and Lentil Salad
serves 2

Ingredients
1  tblsp olive oil
1 small brown onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 x 400g can brown lentils, drained, rinsed
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
80g baby spinach leaves
250g chicken thigh fillets, trimmed
1/2 cup reduced-fat tzatziki dip, to serve

Method
1.  Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add onion. Cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.
2.  Add lentils and red wine vinegar. Cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes or until lentils are heated through. Transfer to a large bowl. Stir in spinach. Season with pepper.
3.  Wipe frying pan clean with paper towel. Add remaining oil to the pan. Heat over medium-high heat. Add chicken. Reduce heat to medium. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes each side or until just cooked through. Transfer to a plate. Stand for 3 minutes.
4.  Thickly slice chicken. Add to lentil mixture and toss to combine.
5.  Spoon salad into serving bowls. Serve with tzatziki.

Ingredients, including that student staple, brown lentils

After cooking the chicken arrange it over the lentil and spinach

And add a dollop of tzatziki.

This dish is going to sustain me until the oven gets fixed *fingers crossed*