Why one of Adam Liaw’s favourite kitchen time-savers isn’t in the kitchen at all

Name: Why one of Adam Liaw’s favourite kitchen time-savers isn’t in the kitchen at all
Cook time: 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Ingredients: 4 chicken thigh fillets; salt and freshly ground black pepper, to season; 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve; ½ red onion, peeled and very thinly sliced; 2 heads baby cos lettuce, cut lengthways into quarters; 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved; 1 avocado, cut into wedges; 1 yellow capsicum, thinly sliced

Adam Liaw

February 13, 2024

easyTime:< 30 minsServes:4

One of my favourite time-savers in the kitchen isn’t actually in the kitchen at all. In every house I’ve lived in for the past 15 years, I’ve always had a barbecue sitting just outside the back door.

Grilling a bit of chicken outside might be slightly more time-consuming than throwing it into a frying pan on the stove, but the extra time it takes more than comes back to you at the end.

In fact, in this grilled chicken salad with Dijon vinaigrette the only thing that’s actually being cooked is the chicken. Moving that cooking outside means you don’t have any pans to wash or a stove to wipe down.

You don’t even need to toss the ingredients for this salad. Just arrange them on a plate and pour the dressing over the top.

Ingredients

4 chicken thigh fillets
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to season
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve
½ red onion, peeled and very thinly sliced
2 heads baby cos lettuce, cut lengthways into quarters
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 avocado, cut into wedges
1 yellow capsicum, thinly sliced

Dijon vinaigrette

1 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
juice of 1 lemon
5 tbsp grapeseed oil, or olive oil

Method

Step 1
Heat a grill pan or barbecue over high heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and toss with olive oil. Grill the fillets for about 4 minutes on each side, until lightly charred and just cooked through. Set aside to rest while you assemble the salad.
Step 2
For the vinaigrette, combine the mustard, vinegar and lemon juice in a large bowl and slowly whisk in the oil to form an emulsified dressing.
Step 3
Arrange the vegetables in piles on a serving plate and season with salt and pepper. Slice the chicken and arrange on the plate as well. Pour the dressing over the salad, grind over more black pepper and serve.

Adam’s tip: My process of barbecuing is very simple: heat the hotplate or grill for about 10 minutes first, clean it with a wire brush, cook whatever I need to, then run it for another 5 minutes before turning it off. No cleaning required.