Ingredients

• 6 tomatoes on the vine
• halved widthways
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 6 sprigs thyme
• leaves picked
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 60g/2½oz Japanese panko breadcrumbs
• 25g/1oz parmesan cheese
• freshly grated
• 1 lemon
• zest only
• 4 chicken breasts
• boneless and skinless
• 75g/3oz plain flour
• 2 free-range eggs
• beaten
• 50g/2oz butter
• 1 bunch watercress
• leaves picked
• 1 lemon
• cut into wedges

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 150C/300F/Gas 1.
• Place the tomatoes
• cut side up onto a roasting tray and drizzle with the olive oil.
• Season with salt and black pepper then scatter half the thyme leaves over the top.
• Place in the oven and roast for 4-6 hours until slightly dried out. Turn the oven off and allow to cool
• preferably overnight in the oven.
• For the chicken
• place the breadcrumbs
• parmesan
• lemon zest and remaining thyme leaves into a food processor and blitz to fine crumbs.
• Butterfly the chicken breasts (Place the chicken onto what would have been the skin side
• then cut down the centre line to half the way through. Turn the knife sideways and cut horizontally almost to the side of the breast to open it out
• then repeat with the other side so you have a chicken breast
• twice the size it was and half the thickness.)
• Season the flour with salt and black pepper then dust the chicken in the flour.
• Dip into the egg then into the breadcrumbs
• making sure to coat each side thoroughly.
• Heat the olive oil and the butter in a large frying pan then add the chicken breasts
• one at a time
• and fry until golden-brown
• about two minutes on each side. Place onto kitchen paper to drain.
• To serve
• pile some tomatoes onto the plate
• add the chicken and a handful of watercress then finish with a wedge of lemon.