GI Express: Chicken kebabs with pear salsa
Petrea King says ‘good food really does nourish the spirit as well as the body’. This recipe is from her new book: Food for Life. Petrea runs the Quest for Life Centre, which gives people practical strategies for living well in challenging circumstances and for finding meaning in the midst of life’s unexpected events.

Makes 8 kebabs (serves 4–6)
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 6–8 minutes

3 teaspoons sesame oil
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
800 g (1 lb 12 oz) skinless chicken breast fillets

Pear salsa
2 just ripe pears, washed and finely diced
½ Spanish (red) onion, finely chopped
1 stick celery, finely diced

Dressing
1 tablespoon chopped chives
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
½ avocado, peeled and stone removed
¾ cup (125 ml/4 fl oz) water

To serve
100 g (3 ½ oz) mixed lettuce leaves

1. Combine the sesame oil, coriander and cumin in a bowl. Cut the chicken into 2.5 cm (1 inch) pieces and toss in the marinade mix. Thread onto 8 skewers and heat a barbecue or grill. Cook the kebabs over medium heat, turning occasionally, for 6–8 minutes or until cooked through. Loosely cover and keep warm while you prepare the salsa.
2. For the salsa, combine the pears, onion and celery in a bowl. For the dressing, place the chive, lemon juice, mustard, avocado and water in a food processor and blend until smooth.
3. Place an equal amount of lettuce leaves on each serving plate, top with the kebabs (allow 2 per person), drizzle with the dressing and serve with the pear salsa.

Energy 1461 kJ/ 348 Cal; 17.6 g fat (includes saturated fat 4.4 g); 2 g fibre; 38.3 g protein; 8.6 g carbohydrate