Leftover Chicken Laksa

When there’s leftover meat in the fridge, but no plan written down, curry is my go to meal. Whether it’s Indian, Thai or otherwise, curry is almost always the answer. My recipe for Leftover Chicken Laksa stays within that pseudo-tradition, transforming cold meat into something worth devouring.

The biggest draw for me when it comes to preparing a chicken laksa is that it’s a true one-pot dinner. No boiling rice separately or toasting spices; pour it all in. And because it’s ready in around 30 minutes, laksa is perfect for a hassle-free evening meal.

Don’t let the number of ingredients required to make chicken laksa put you off; the process is painfully simple. No more complicated than making any other type of curry. Making chicken laksa is a case of creating a paste and incorporating a few extras.

Once you know how to make chicken laksa, you’ll always come back for more. But chicken isn’t the only leftover meat you can use; turkey, lamb and even fish all have flavours that pair well with the fragrance of lemongrass, coconut milk and coriander.

I’m always looking for recipes that ensure those vital leftover never go to waste, and I’ve built up quite a collection; leftover lamb hotpot, leftover turkey curry and Singapore fried rice.

Leftover Chicken Laksa

Serves 4 – 6

Ingredients:

• 3 cloves of garlic
• 2 lemongrass stalks, roughly chopped
• juice of 1 lime
• a generous handful of coriander, plus extra to serve
• 3 tbsp sunflower oil
• 3 red chillies, including seeds
• 2 tsp turmeric
• 400g leftover chicken, in large chunks
• 1 red pepper, roughly chopped
• 400ml can of coconut milk, low-fat is fine
• 100ml water
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• a few drops of fish sauce
• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 300g fresh rice noodles, or similar
• a small handful of mint, to serve
• 3-4 spring onions, roughly chopped

Method:

1. Using a food processor, create a paste using the garlic, lemongrass, lime juice, coriander, sunflower oil and 2 of the red chillies.
2. Heat the remaining oil in a large pan or wok and briefly stir fry the paste, before adding the turmeric, chicken, red pepper, coconut milk, water, soy sauce, fish sauce, peanut butter, sesame oil and salt.
3. Simmer until the chicken is hot through and the red pepper is softened slightly. Add the fresh noodles to the dish and warm through.
4. Serve immediately, topped with roughly torn mint, coriander, chilli, sesame oil and the spring onions.

Cost: A great way to use up leftover chicken, your laksa shouldn’t set you back too much; certainly not as much as if you used chicken breast. All included, the entire curry shouldn’t cost more than £6.