I’m feeling profoundly inarticulate today, my brain having melted to within an inch of its life. Never have I been so hot and not at a beach. I’ve even given up lusting after picnics and parks. There’s a stretch of boiling tarmac and a sweaty underground transport system between me and the outside world. No. I’ll drink iced tea and wait for this all to blow over instead.
I was going to share with you a very easy recipe for baked chicken with quinoa, but after sticking my head in the fridge to cool off I realised the leftovers could be used to make something far greater: chicken and beetroot quinoa salad. I didn’t plan for any of this, and you probably shouldn’t too. Even thinking about turning on an oven in this heat is tiring enough, but if you do so happen to have some leftover chicken and quinoa (and who doesn’t!) please make this.
You’ll need some roasted chicken thighs and cooked quinoa (I used the three colour kind which has a wonderful texture). For the roasted vegetables, feel free to use whatever you like, although beetroot is glorious with chicken. I had leftover beetroot, leeks, peppers and red onion along with a handful of garlic cloves and a sticky roasted lemon cut into wedges.
Pull the chicken from the bone and mix with the quinoa and vegetables. Squeeze all the juice you can from the baked lemon, as well as the juice of half a fresh one. Add a generous amount of chopped parsley and season well. A good sprinkling of sumac is also delicious if you have it.
Sorry for freestyle nature of recipe. Am very hot.
To The Table 