I love chicken soup of all kinds, matzoh balls lying heavy in a pool of hot chicken broth with a sprinkling of mandel (kosher-style oyster crackers), noodle soup, with puffy homemade egg noodles, and pho chicken soup, slurping up the toothsome noodles and dipping your spoon into the slightly piquant, garlicy broth. And now, I even liked poached chicken, ladled into bowls, with loads of fresh springtime veggies, a smattering of beans (lima and fava), and served with a sinus- cleansing fresh horseradish sauce.

Now I know that many of you might be saying to yourself, “Poached chicken? I remember poached chicken like my grandma used to make, coated in a thick, rubbery layer of opaque chicken skin, and the vegetables stewed to oblivion.” That description can be true, but there is a remedy to each poaching dilemma. Adding the vegetables in a proper cooking order, according to cooking time, prevents you from getting a mushy pile of grey vegetables. The vegetable choices that you make are key. Rather than the ordinary mire poix of veggies, opt for the less traditional but equally delicious, fennel, turnip, and radish in addition to potatoes, spring onion, and carrot. And the skin– well, what can be said about the skin; it’s a necessary evil. It protects the meat’s succulence, and imparts a lot of flavor to the stock, but will have to be peeled off before consuming the chicken. If you’re squeamish about doing this, as I am, just get your spouse or friend to do it for you. Problem solved!

This poached chicken recipe, is actually inspired by Jamie Oliver’s recipe for Spring Poached Chicken in his latest book Jamie’s Dinners. As the daffodils are pushing their way through the soil, and the sun is peaking out from behind the clouds one day, and hidden by storm clouds the next, this dish is the perfect celebration of spring and all its follies. It celebrates the season with its fresh selection of produce, and is warm and homey. The broth that is produced by the poaching liquid is actually quite flavorful, as the entire chicken is poached whole within it. And the horseradish sauce, made from freshly grated horseradish and creme fraiche (although you could use sour cream or yoghurt, if you can’t find the latter) offers a much welcomed pungency, to this settling meal.

Spring Poached Chicken
from Jamie’s Dinners

Serves 4

4 1/2 lbs. chicken, preferably organic
handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley
4 bay leaves
2 handfuls new potatoes, cleaned and scrubbed
2 handfuls baby carrots
2 handfuls baby turnips or radishes
1 bulb fennel, quartered, herby tops removed
2 handfuls peas
2 handfuls fava beans
1 colanderful fresh spinach leaves

optional:
1 horseradish, peeled and grated (or to taste)
1 small jar creme fraiche

Clean and dry the chicken, stuff with parsley and bay leaves. Put in a stock pot, filling with water to cover the chicken by an inch. Add a teaspoon of salt, and scatter in the potatoes. Bring to a boil, skimming of any scum. Once a boil has been reached, turn down the heat and cover, simmering for 20 minutes. Now add the fennel, carrots, and turnips; carry on simmering for 30-40 minutes.

When leg bone can easily be pulled away from the rest of chicken, it is cooked to perfection. Vegetables will be cooked to an ideal softness. To make the horseradish cream, grate horseradish into a bowl, season with salt and pepper, and stir in creme fraiche.

Remove chicken from pot, removing parsley and bay leaves, and divide into pieces, removing the skin. Add the beans, peas, and spinach to the pot to simmer for 5 minutes, or until cooked. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then ladle into bowl getting some broth and an equal portion of veggie. Place a portion of chicken in each bowl, and serve with horseradish cream on the side.