Peruvian chicken soup

Ingredients

• 50 g coriander (leaves and stalks), plus extra leaves to serve
• 1 small onion, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• 1 green chilli, deseeded
• 1 celery stick, roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 500 ml chicken stock
• 50 g quinoa, well rinsed
• 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 150 g), quartered
• 50 g frozen peas
• Juice of ½ a lime
• Sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
• Lime wedges, to serve

Method

Put the coriander, stalks and all, and the onion, garlic, chilli, celery and olive oil into a food processor and blitz until you get a pesto-like consistency.
Tip the mixture into a saucepan and fry gently for several minutes, then add the stock and rinsed quinoa. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes.
Add the chicken and cook for a further 15 minutes until the chicken and quinoa are cooked through. Transfer the chicken from the pan to a plate, then shred with a fork. Return the chicken to the pan with the peas and bring to a simmer. Add the lime juice and cook for a few minutes until the peas are tender.
Season and serve scattered with extra coriander leaves and lime wedges on the side.

This recipe is an extract from The Midlife Kitchen: Health-Boosting Recipes for Midlife and Beyond by Mimi Spencer and Sam Rice is published by Hachette Australia in hardback ($39.99) and ebook ($19.99)

Photography by: Issy Crocker.

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