This tastes better than it looks.

A few have asked if I’ve discovered any unique Swiss cuisine in my wanderings across this lovely country.

That is hard to say, because Switzerland has so excelled at exporting its food culture all through my life, that many things I thought were Canadian have turned out to be Swiss. I will spare you the list.

I am working on some recipes while here, however, and so maybe they are genuine Swiss recipes by virtue of geographic origins. But then, maybe not. Here’s the latest:

Swiss Curry Mango Cashew Chicken

Ingredients:

• 2-4 chicken breasts, skinned and boned
• Heinz curry mango sauce (yes, I’m cheating)
• 1 red pepper
• 1 zucchini
• 1-1.5 cups pineapple chunks, canned (sorry, this does not work as well with fresh pineapple, which tends to be dry over here)
• cashews – as many as you like
• butter
• salt

This is a basic stir-fry with two tiny twists to add more flavour. It’s also all cooked in one pot, keeping the clean-up time to a minimum.  Here’s how it goes:

1. Heat wok or large cookpot (at high setting).
2. Melt butter and add chicken breasts whole. Pan-fry til done. Remove breasts and cool. Do not be afraid to undercook a little, because these will go back into the pan for a longer simmer later.
3. With the pot still at high heat, add cashews to the same hot pot and brown. While this is going on, chop zucchini and pepper into bite-size pieces.
4. Dice cooked chicken breasts.
5. Return all of the above to the hot pot with the cashews.
6. Drain can of pineapple, and add pineapple to the hot pot. Stir.
7. Add curry mango sauce. How much depends on what brand you’re using. If you’re employing Heinz’s sauce, use about 1/2 cup.
8. Add salt to taste.
9. Cook at high heat for about 5 minutes, stirring often, then turn down to a simmer. Cover. Simmer until liquids have steamed off (cooking time depends on the ingredient’s moisture content and the temperature of your stove elements. I can’t give precise advice for a North American kitchen because I am working with a state-of-the-art Euro-cooktop that is also possessed by the devil and makes no sense).
10. When vegetables have softened and chicken is tender, turn up heat and stir around to brown ingredients.
11. Here’s the twist. Just before serving, stir in another half-cup or more of mango-curry sauce (to taste). It will amp up the flavour beautifully.
12. Twist #2: Do not be tempted to chop the chicken before cooking it. This works well in some instances, but the chicken in Switzerland leans towards toughness, so it will cook to a more tender texture if cooked whole beforehand.