Pollo (Chicken) Tonnato
Slices of poached chicken breast in tuna sauce garnished with capers and lemon slices served at room temperature. A quick and easy recipe and a great dish for summer parties. A crusty bread to mop up the sauce and a glass of wine are all you need. This is a variation on Vitello Tonnato, a dish from Piedmont in Italy. Tonnato means made with tuna.
Ingredients
- Chicken
- 4 chicken breast fillets, skinless and boneless
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) dry white wine
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 celery stalk, coarsely chopped
- 1 scallion stalk, coarsely chopped
- 3 cups (750 ml) water or light chicken stock
- 2 Tbsp capers, rinsed and drained
- 4-5 peppercorns
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 parsley sprig
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- capers, lemons slices, and greens for garnish (optional)
- Tonnato Sauce
- 7 oz (200 g) can of good quality tuna, drained
- 4 anchovies in oil, excess salt removed and patted dry on towel papers
- 1 cup (240 ml) mayonnaise, homemade or of good commercial quality
- lemon juice (optional)
- reserved cooking liquid, to thin up the sauce, if necessary
Preparation
In a small food processor, add drained tuna, anchovies, and the mayonnaise. Blend until smooth. Taste for salt and pepper, if necessary. If you like a bit of piquancy in the sauce, add a bit of lemon juice.
Combine the wine, lemon juice, celery and scallions, peppercorns, bay leaf, parsley and salt (optional) in a saucepan. Add about 3 cups of water or light chicken stock. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to a low simmer. Add the chicken breasts. Make sure that there is enough water or stock to cover the chicken. Poach breasts for about 8 minutes. Let chicken cool in the liquid. Drain but keep the liquid for another use.
Serve cold poached chicken and tuna sauce. Garnish with capers and lemon slices.
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