It was Lawrence’s birthday last week. He turned the grand old age of two. Now, when my first born son turned two I remember staying up half the night (despite having an office job that started at about 7.45am every day) modelling a cake into a train shape, making perfect snacks and filling carefully thought out party bags.
Needless to say, three children in and I am a little less of a perfectionist. We still had a party and we still had a cake, but the party food was a collective effort. Some homemade, some from the local samosa shop and a few short cuts from the supermarket. I know which battles to fight these days. It did all taste and (importantly to the kids), look great. Happy days!
And the same applies to my lunches too. I want food that tastes delicious, that doesn’t take forever to prepare and that’s also good for me. I love a jacket potato; always have done. It’s the contrast of the texture of the crunchy skin with the fluffy interior. So simple and yet, hard to beat.
But a jacket potato isn’t usually an easy, speedy lunch – not if you do it right. Microwaving them from raw makes for an inferior jacket – soft skinned and not in the least bit fluffy. Well, McCain have come up with the goods, their microwavable jackets are pre baked in the oven before being frozen, providing a delicious oven baked taste in just five minutes.
So far in this Lunch in 5 series, I have made Boston beans, where I lifted the humble baked bean to new, slightly spicier heights and then I made an easy, tasty mix of bacon, avocado and spring onion. Today I have for you one of the best ways of using up cold roast chicken I’ve ever come across; tarragon chicken salad.
The whole dish is ready in just five minutes flat, meaning there’s no need to plan ahead in order to enjoy that proper oven baked jacket potato taste.
McCain would love to see what you enjoy for your lunch, so why not tag @McCainUK and use the hashtag #lunchin5.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Yield: 2
- 2 McCain Ready Baked Jacket Potatoes
- 200g cold roast chicken, chopped
- ½ cucumber, cut into cubes
- 1 small head of Little Gem lettuce, chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh tarragon, finely chopped
- 3 tbsp Greek yoghurt
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1 tsp black pepper
Microwave the McCain Ready Baked Jacket for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, stir together all the filling ingredients in a large bowl, being careful to ensure all the lettuce is well dressed in the yoghurt. Serve over the McCain jacket potatoes.
This post was supported by McCain.
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Holly Bell 
This looks lovely! We just tried the bacon and avocado recipe this evening for a speedy supper in between dashing out to church meetings, teenage daughter’s school concert drop-offs and pick-ups & goodness knows what else. It was even nicer than expected and I’m completely converted to the frozen potatoes which I’d been very snobby about up till now.
I’m a bit annoyed by the pop-up ads I’m getting lately on your blog though – tonight’s was an ad for a horror film and creepy to say the least, especially just before bed! I wouldn’t mind but when they appear the page sort of gets stuck and I can’t scroll up to where I need to click to close the ad.
Pleased to hear you like the recipe! Sorry to hear the ad is an issue. They are rarely on here for very long, but I am sure you understand that the site has running costs and the advertising is one way to help with this. x