- 250g chicken breast mini fillets
- 4 shallots
- 1 courgette
- 1 large potato
- 1 garlic clove
- 200g asparagus
- A 400g tin of butter beans
- 1 chicken stock cube
- A handful of chervil
- 1½ tbsp olive oil
- Sea salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- 300ml boiling water
- Large pan with a lid
- Heatproof measuring jug
- Sieve or colander
- 1.
Warm a large pan over a medium heat for 1 min. Add 1 tbsp olive oil and the chicken. Cook for 6-8 mins, turning once to brown all over.
- 2.
While the chicken cooks, peel and quarter the shallots. Trim the ends from the courgette, halve lengthways and then thickly slice. Peel and crush or grate the garlic clove. Peel and dice the potato.
- 3.
Lift the chicken out of the pan and pop on a plate. Add another ½ tbsp olive oil. Add the shallots and courgettes. Season with salt and pepper. Fry for 3-4 mins till softened and beginning to brown. Stir often. Add the garlic and potato and cook for another 1 min.
- 4.
Crumble the stock cube into a heatproof jug. Add 300ml boiling water and stir. Return the chicken to the pan with any juices from the plate. Pour over the stock. Bring to the boil, then cover and simmer for 7-8 mins.
- 5.
Trim any woody ends off the asparagus and chop into bite-size chunks (see our tip below). Add it to the pan, sitting the asparagus on top of the stew – you don’t need to stir it in. Cover and let the asparagus steam for 2 mins till just tender.
- 6.
Drain and rinse the butter beans. Roughly chop the chervil, discarding any tough stalks. Stir the beans into the stew with half the chervil, mixing in the asparagus. Cover and simmer for 2 mins to warm everything through.
- 7.
Taste the stew and add more salt and pepper if it needs it. Ladle the stew into warm bowls. Garnish with the remaining chervil to serve.
- Tip
Breaking point
The easiest way to trim the asparagus is to snap them. Simply hold the end of each spear with your fingers and bend till it snaps - the asparagus automatically breaks where the woody part ends and the fresh, juicy asparagus begins.