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Poached Chicken Breasts with Almond Sauce

Delicately flavoured chicken breasts with a creamy almond sauce - perfect for feeding a crowd!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Course: Main Course
Servings: 12 people
Author: Amanda Lawson

Ingredients

Poached Chicken Breasts

  • 6 single chicken breast fillets
  • 1 cup white wine (optional, substitute with a cup of water if you prefer)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp juniper berries
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 3 sprigs fresh thyme leaves
  • 1 lemon, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup roasted almonds to garnish
  • 1/2 cup mint leaves to garnish

Almond Sauce

  • 200 g raw almonds or 200g almond meal
  • 400 mL extra virgin olive oil
  • 300 mL water
  • 4 egg yolks, room temperature
  • 2 tbsp brown rice vinegar
  • sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Instructions

Poached Chicken Breasts

  • Arrange the chicken breasts in a single layer in a large pot or saucpean.
  • Pour the wine over the top of the chicken breasts, add the other ingredients, then pour over enough cold water to cover the chicken by about 4 cm.
  • Place over a medium heat, bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat, keep the saucepan covered, allowing the chicken to cool for 2 hours.
  • Refrigerate the chicken in the stock for up to 3 days until ready to serve. Freeze the stock if you like to use for a soup base.
  • When ready to serve, remove the chicken breasts from the poaching liquid. Cut into thin slices and arrange on a platter. Pour the almond sauce on the top and sprinkle with chopped roasted almonds and mint leaves.

Almond Sauce

  • If using whole raw almonds, grind them into almondmeal using a blender or a food processor.
  • Heat the almonds with the water in a small saucepan for about 5 minutes. Allow to cool for a few minutes.
  • Mix the almond mixture with the egg yolks, olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper in a blender. You can whisk this by hand if you like, but I find blending the ingredients gives you a creamier sauce.
  • Taste the sauce - you may wish to add a little more vinegar or seasoning.
  • Refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to use. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Notes

The sauce will keep for up to 3 days. Serve on top of poached chicken breasts, or with roasted cauliflower, romanesco or broccoli.