ZUCCHINI PASTA with GRILLED CHICKEN

My beautiful friend surprised me last year with a fruit & vegetable twister-processing device, after we had attended a raw cooking class and saw one of these babies in action. You can make anything into spaghetti with these nifty circular devices. The best news is that whilst they may cost up to $80 to buy in a store, they are only around $8 on ebay or on selective websites. I have used mine on several occasions, the majority being to create extremely healthy zucchini pasta. These twisting devices are quite simple to use, however if I give you one tip it is to be patient when starting out for the first time. Make sure you buy smaller zucchinis as the bigger ones will not fit into the device and halving the zucchinis will not result in nice-looking pasta. Do not try to jam the vegetable up in the cylinder or the twisting just will not happen (guilty). This zucchini pasta tricks both my and my husband's minds into thinking that we are eating actual pasta! and that's saying something as we loveeeee the real deal. If you are vegetarian, substitute the chicken for some steamed broccoli, some toasted nuts or if you are pescetarian prawns go great with this! 

INGREDIENTS

• 4 small to medium zucchini, ends removed and cut into half
• sea salt
• 250-300g free range chicken breast or thighs, cut into small, even pieces
• 1 heaped teaspoon miso paste
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce
• the juice of 1 medium lime
• 2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
• 250g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 a medium ripe avocado, diced
• Optional- a handful of fresh coriander, shallots and/or chives, finely chopped
• Equipment- a twister fruit & vegetable processing device (I used the device above) or a vegetable spiraliser or two-bladed Julianne peeler. 

PREPARATION & COOKING

1. Combine the chicken pieces, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, 2 teaspoons water and miso paste in a medium bowl. Stir well to combine, adding more water if the paste does not mix well with the chicken. Place in the refrigerator to marinade whilst you prepare the pasta. 

2. Twist the zucchini through the twister device, one half at a time and let the noodles fall into a large bowl. When all the zucchini has been made into noodles lay them out on an absorbent paper towel or tea towel. Sprinkle with a generous pinch of sea salt and leave for a few minutes whilst you grill/fry the chicken. This will give the salt time to absorb some of the water from the zucchini so you are not serving watery noodles. 

3. Remove the chicken from the fridge. Heat a grill plate or medium frying pan over medium heat and add the chicken. Cook, stirring frequently, for 4-5 minutes or until all the chicken is cooked. Remove from heat.  

Optional step: Once the chicken has been removed from the pan, dry fry the zucchini pasta gently for a few minutes, just to warm them up and improve the texture. This is optional, but I find I prefer the noodles very lightly fried. 

4. Combine the lime juice, fish sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, sesame seeds and a tablespoon of water in a small jug or bowl. Stir to combine and taste, adding more water if it is too tart for you. Place the noodles, chicken or extra vegetables, tomato, avocado and herbs (if using) in a medium bowl and drizzle the dressing over the top. Divide into two bowls.  

Serves / 2

Total Preparation time (inc. making the noodles) 20 -25 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 10 minutes 

x Emily