This colourful winter dish from Lloyd Cremer, executive chef at The Brasserie, Hilton Adelaide, combines poached and roasted chicken with beetroot spaetzle (small dumplings), rainbow chard, swede and parsnip crisps.

Recipe serves four.

Ingredients

4 chicken breasts with skin on

Poaching liquid
100g celery
100g carrots
50g leeks
50g white onions
15g minced garlic
3-5 branches of thyme
1/3 bunch parsley
5 peppercorns
3g mustard seed
3 bay leaves
1 litre dark chicken stock
50ml kecap manis
2 cinnamon sticks
10g coriander seeds – toasted
20g ginger

Beetroot spaetzle
400g flour
50g semolina
10g salt
Pinch nutmeg/clove powder
250g eggs
50ml milk
100ml beetroot juice

Swede
200g swede
15ml honey
2 sprigs of thyme
15ml butter

Rainbow chard
200g rainbow chard
50g white onions, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
20g flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
15g butter
30ml white wine
50ml cream

Parsnip crisps
100g parsnips
20g red sorrel
1 baby beetroot peeled and thinly sliced

Method

Sauté poaching liquid vegetables until well-coloured. Add thyme, parsley, peppercorns, mustard seeds and bay leaves and then stock, followed by kecap manis, cinnamon sticks, coriander seeds and ginger.

Taste and correct for seasoning if necessary, then place on a slow boil and poach chicken until underdone. Remove from liquid and finish in a hot oven, then allow to rest.

Beetroot spaetzle

Place the dry ingredients into a mixer, then add eggs and milk and whisk until combined. Add beetroot juice until all is incorporated into a smooth batter.

Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil; place a spatzle tray or large-holed colander over water and force the spaetzle through the holes. As it pushes through, cut off the batter at the base so it drops into the boiling water . When the spaetzle floats, remove from water with a slotted spoon and cool down or use immediately.

Swede

Peel, cube and roast swede with honey, thyme, black pepper and butter.

Rainbow chard

Sauté onions until lightly colored, then add minced garlic and butter with parsley. Add chard and a splash of cream and white wine – season, and add cooked swede.

Parsnip crisps

Peel parsnips and then, using a bow peeler, get the longest strips possible from the parsnip and fry at 160 degrees. Season to taste and drain on a paper towel. Garnish with red sorrel and baby beetroot slices.

Plate up

Re-heat spaetzle in hot water, add to sautéed chard and swede pan –  do not boil. Remove from heat – place in a bowl and add three slices of chicken – garnish with parsnip crisps and red sorrel and beetroot discs