Cooking with Kids

WORDS BRAD KING | IMAGES BRYDIE THOMPSON

At The Falls Retreat, we believe that a kids’ menu should be equally as enticing and nutritious as the adult version (if not more so for those little growing bodies!). No frozen chicken nuggets around here! Whilst we encourage our kids to try new flavours, we are also aware that their favourite meals are often the tried and tested family favourites, such as homemade fish and chips or spaghetti Bolognese.

The best part of creating simple, family meals is that you can also engage your kids with the cooking – lack of complicated recipes and easy to follow instructions give them the opportunity to help prepare a family dinner This recipe for fried chicken tenders is the one we use for our kids’ menu at The Falls Retreat and is one that the whole family will enjoy making and eating. It can be adapted to suit your family’s tastes, so feel free to omit cayenne pepper if the little people are not keen.

Having access to our organic veggie gardens means our meals are packed with whatever is coming out of the gardens, so we find dinners such as these are often accompanied by baby carrots or cherry tomatoes, depending on the season. If you want to get your kids eating salad and nutritious green leaves – try sorrel. It can be served raw, and its tangy, sour apple flavour is often a hit with kids. Or get them making crispy kale chips – simply toss leaves in olive oil and a pinch of salt and roast on a baking tray at 175°C for 12–15 minutes (be careful not to burn them, as they become bitter). Then the best part of all – sitting down together to enjoy your family feast.

Falls Retreat | 07 863 8770 25 Waitawheta Road, Karangahake Gorge www.fallsretreat.co.nz

BUTTERMILK CHICKEN TENDERS

MARINADE

1kg chicken tenderloins or breast (about 2cm thick) 1 cup buttermilk 1½ tsp salt ¼ tsp cayenne pepper ¼ tsp garlic powder ¼ tsp paprika

BUTTERMILK DIP

3 tbsp buttermilk 1 egg whisked

CRUMB

1½ cups flour 1½ tsp baking powder 1 tsp salt 1 tsp black pepper 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp paprika 1½ cups cornflakes, scrunched

COOK

3–4 cups vegetable oil, for cooking

To marinate the chicken: In a bowl combine the chicken tenders with the marinade ingredients, mix well, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Crumb: Combine the crumb ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Dip: Whisk buttermilk dip ingredients together and season. Assemble: Remove the chicken from the marinade one at a time. Run the tenders first through the dip mix then into the crumb bowl. Press the crumb mix into the tenders to get a lovely thick coat. Be sure to press the crumb firmly into the chicken so that the clumps adhere to the tenders.

Set crumbed tenders on the prepared baking sheet and rest in the fridge to help set the crumb to the chicken. To fry the chicken: Deep fry in batches at 180°C until golden (or alternately drizzle with oil and bake in the oven at 180°C until the internal temp of the tenders is at 75°C or the juices run clear). Drain on paper towels. Season with a pinch of salt over the cooked fried chicken and serve.

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