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| Chicken & Guava Casserole on White Rice |
This is one of those French‑bistro vibe recipes - simple, comforting, and full of slow‑cooked flavour without the long wait. Fresh guavas aren’t common in New Zealand, so I use canned guavas with the hard seeds removed (highly recommended). I’ve used fresh garden rosemary for its aromatic lift because that’s what I had on hand, but thyme - fresh or dried - will work too.
For cooking wine, always reach for the cheapest bottle and save the good stuff for drinking. I usually grab a budget cleanskin sauvignon blanc or a cheap herbaceous vermouth; both round out a sauce wonderfully.
Chicken drums can be swapped for thighs or any other cut you prefer - just choose whatever fits your budget.
Watch me make this here:
Ingredients:
(serves 3-4)
2-3 chicken drums per person, skinned
1 420gm can guavas
2-3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, peeled and sliced into chunks
Rosemary or thyme sprigs (dried, 1/2 tbsp)
3/4 cup white wine (sauvignon blanc or pinot gris)
3/4 cup water
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tbsp instant chicken stock powder
1 tbsp corn flour/cornstarch to thicken
Rice for 3-4 persons cooked according to packet directions
Method:
Heat the oil in a frying pan to medium high, braise the drums each side for a few minutes until light brown then place them in a casserole dish. The objective isn't to cook them through but simply add flavor to the rest of the dish.
Reduce the heat, add a little more olive oil to the pan and fry the onion for a few minutes until lightly brown. Add the herbs, white wine and water to deglaze the pan for one minute. Turn off the heat and add the chicken stock, corn flour, garlic, dijon mustard and sliced guavas. Let the flavours mix for a few minutes.
Place the chicken drumstsicks in a lidded-casserole dish and pour over the sauce. Adjust the sliced guavas across the chicken pieces.
Bake at 180°C (fan) for 40 minutes.
About 20 minutes before serving, prepare and cook the rice.
Remove any woody herb sprigs. Serve the chicken and guava flesh over the rice, spooning plenty of the sauce over each portion. Garnish with chopped parsley if it's available.
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