Orange Chicken Breasts with Roasted Fennel and Buckwheat

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the fennel and orange marinade

   Preheat the oven to 220 °C. Trim the fennel bulbs, halve them lengthwise, and cut them into wedges about 1 cm wide. Finely grate the orange zest, then squeeze out the juice. Mix the juice and zest with the mustard, 10 ml olive oil, crushed garlic, 2 g salt, and half the pepper.

   
2. 2

   Partially roast the fennel

   Spread the fennel in a single layer on a baking sheet, drizzle with the remaining olive oil, and toss to coat. Roast for 12 minutes, until it starts to soften and the edges turn golden.

   
3. 3

   Add the chicken

   Pat the chicken breasts dry and cut them into four equal-sized pieces. Brush them with the orange marinade and arrange them among the partially roasted fennel. Roast for another 16 to 20 minutes; when cooked, the thickest piece should reach 74 °C in the center. If the fennel is browning too quickly, loosely cover it with foil.

   
4. 4

   Cook the buckwheat

   While the chicken finishes cooking, rinse the buckwheat in a sieve. Bring 480 ml water and the remaining 3 g salt to a boil in a saucepan, add the buckwheat, cover, and simmer over low heat for 12 to 15 minutes, until the water has been absorbed. Remove from the heat and leave to stand for 5 minutes.

   
5. 5

   Season and serve

   Fluff the buckwheat with a fork and stir in the finely chopped parsley, the juice of half a lemon, and the remaining black pepper. Taste and adjust the salt and acidity; the lemon should brighten the flavor without overpowering the buckwheat. Serve with the chicken and tender fennel, browned at the edges.