Chicken, Charred Broccoli & Beetroot Salad with Avocado Pesto

Josh, our Executive Head Chef, has been plying our teams with healthy lunch recipes to get us through lock down so we thought we’d share a few. This one has more ingredients than some of the other recipes that we have posted but is definitely worth it if you are prepared to give it a go. It serves 4 so if there is less of you in the house either eat it on multiple days or cut down the ingredients accordingly – or, even better, make some extra a give it to your neighbours who may need it!

Method

Salad:

1. Bring a large pan of water to the boil, add the broccoli and cook for 2 mins. Drain, then refresh under cold water.
2. Heat a griddle or frying pan, toss the broccoli in 1⁄2 tsp of the rapeseed oil and griddle for 2-3 mins, turning, until a little charred. Set aside to cool.
3. Brush the chicken with the remaining oil and season with salt and pepper. Leave to cool, then slice or shred into chunky pieces.

Pesto:

1. Pick the leaves from the basil and set aside a handful to top the salad.
2. Put the rest in the small bowl of a food processor.
3. Scoop the flesh from the avocado and add to the food processor with the garlic, walnuts, oil, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 2-3 tbsp cold water and some seasoning.
4. Blitz until smooth, then transfer to a small serving dish.

Combing & Plating:

1. Pour the remaining lemon juice over the sliced onions and leave for a few mins.
2. Pile the watercress onto a large platter.
3. Toss through the broccoli and onion, along with the lemon juice they were soaked in.
4. Top with the beetroot, but don’t mix it in, and the chicken.
5. Scatter over the reserved basil leaves, the lemon zest and nigella seeds, then serve with the avocado pesto.
6. Enjoy!