Midweek Meals: Five simple and delicious traybakes to make this week

Save on wash-up this week 

Five yummy traybakes for the week ahead

Creamy chicken traybake with rosemary, smoked bacon and peas

recipe by:Aisling Larkin

Comforting and delicious, this dish is everything you need after a long day

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 60 mins

Total Time

 1 hours 10 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp oil

• 1 tbsp butter 

• 6 chicken fillets 

• salt

• pepper 

• 30g Dijon mustard 

• 10 sprigs rosemary 

• 6 garlic cloves

• 250g smoked streaky bacon 

• 1.2kg waxy baby potatoes 

• 200ml chicken stock 

• 250-350ml cream 

• 1 heaped tsp cornflour 

• 100g frozen petit pois peas 

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180℃ fan/200℃.

2. Wash the potatoes and cut into cubes. Trim the chicken. Dice the streaky bacon. Mince the garlic. Boil the kettle and make up the stock. Mix the cornflour and 2 tbsp of the cold cream together until it forms a smooth paste. Stir in the rest of the cream, dijon mustard, garlic, stock and seasoning.

3. Put the oil and butter on the baking tray. Pop in the oven and heat up for a couple of minutes. Take out and place on the chicken and bacon. It should sizzle on the hot oil and butter as it hits it. Place the potato cubes on the tray next. Pour over the sauce lay in the springs of rosemary, keeping two or three back for garnish. Feel free to use 2 oven trays to fit everything.

4. After 45 minutes, remove the traybake, sprinkle in the frozen petit pois and gently stir it a little. Return to the oven to bake.

5. Bake for fifteen more minutes, until the potatoes are tender and the chicken is cooked through fully.

6. Serve with a simple green salad.

Chicken, cider and bacon traybake

recipe by:Currabinny Cooks

This is a wonderful example of how bacon can help elevate the taste of the other ingredients in a dish

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 40 mins

Total Time

 45 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 4 organic skin-on chicken thighs

• 4 thick-cut smoked rashers

• 1 banana shallot, peeled and thinly sliced

• 450ml dry Irish cider

• 1 heaped tsp Dijon mustard

• 1 tbsp plain flour

• Butter

• Olive oil

• Sea salt and black pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C.

2. Heat a little olive oil in a large oven proof pan or casserole on medium high. Add the chicken legs to the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes each side so it is brown and crispy on the outside.

3. Remove the chicken to a side plate. Add the bacon to the pan along with the shallot and cook for 3-4 minutes until the bacon crisps up and the shallot softens. Stir the flour into the pan. Gradually pour in the cider, simmering for 4 minutes and then stirring in the mustard.

4. Place the chicken legs back in the pan and place in the oven, baking for 35-40 minutes. The chicken should be cooked through and the sauce, bubbling and turning golden. Serve.