Mountain Flavours...Chicken Four Ways
Catering at Altitude, a few thoughts on Val Thorens. Curry Pouch Chicken and Pesto Chicken Pasta
The snowdrops are well and truly here, pushing through the last of winter's grip, and the lengthening days bring a promise of spring. My last post shared our week away in the French Alps: Mountain Flavours - A Week in the Alps, Val Thorens. Following the ebb and flow of ski life. The piece was getting rather long, so I felt the self-catering angle deserved its own story…..
To my mind cooking in a tiny kitchen at 2300m isn't so different from catering while camping. The same principles apply, trying to keep everyone well-fed within budget, and working with limited equipment and space. There is also the randomness of the local grocery shops and the discovery of utensils one might or might not find.
Over the years, we've flipped between half-board and self-catering ski holidays. While I love trying local dishes and escaping washing up, those late evening half-board meals add up and often leave me feeling huge by the end of the holiday. The combination of calorie over-compensation due to a full-on day on the slopes and the late dining, then falling asleep on a full stomach never quite suits my digestive system.
Self-catering isn't just about saving money, though that's certainly a benefit. It's about creating a home base, having control over meal times, and the satisfaction of a well-planned kitchen strategy. There's nowhere to walk off a big dinner at 8 pm in a ski resort, but eating earlier means proper digestion before bed - a kind of natural fasting that just feels right after an active day on the slopes.
What follows is my approach to keeping it simple, what we brought with us, and how one basic recipe became several different meals across a few nights. All achievable without spending hours in a tiny kitchen. I also might add could be used in any home!
Here's how to make four nights of satisfying dinners with minimal fuss and maximum efficiency - perfect for when you're juggling ski boots, tired legs, and a tiny mountain kitchen.
The Strategy: A Four Night Plan
Mountain apartment cooking requires different thinking than cooking at home. You're working with minimal equipment, limited shopping options, and often a small fridge. Plus, at altitude, even basic cooking processes change. A different hob, once it gets going, is fast and furious and then it doesn't slow down as one might expect, affecting cooking times and techniques. What follows is a four-night approach, leaving room for a bit of randomness for the other few nights, a meal out perhaps (chefs night off) or sample something made in the mountains…for us it was quiche from the boulangerie.
This plan is built around shared ingredients and simple cooking methods. Each meal served 3 people (could easily be scaled and to be honest we had too much pasta one night!).
Night 1: Curry Pouch Chicken with Red Pepper
Night 2: Curry Pouch Chicken with carrots
Night 3 & 4: Chicken Pasta Pesto
The Shopping List
One trip to the supermarket, four nights sorted
Proteins:
4 large chicken breasts (2 packs of 2)
1 large tin haricot beans
Vegetables:
4 onions
1 red pepper
2 carrots
2 courgettes
2 packs mushrooms (400g in total/100g a night)
Sauces & Seasonings:
1 pouch of curry paste
2 tubs of pesto
Carbs:
3 microwave rice pouches
Pasta of choice (500g), check cooking time, white cooks quicker than brown
Night One: Curry Pouch Chicken with Red Pepper
That first night, that first meal when it's all new and need something comforting but quick
Onion diced, red pepper diced, mushrooms sliced
1 large chicken breast, thinly sliced
Curry paste
¼ tin haricot beans
1½ microwave rice pouches
Soften the onion, peppers and mushrooms in a large pan. A little oil if you have some, a little water if not.
Add the chicken and stir through for a minute or so, thinly sliced should help it cook quicker
Add a few squeezes of the curry paste, stir through
Add the beans, no need to drain
The rice is already cooked, so use a bowl and a saucer as the lid. Heat through for a couple of minutes and serve with the chicken.
Night Two: Carrot Curry Pouch Chicken
A variation using the same basic method but different vegetables
Onion, diced, finely diced carrots, mushrooms
1 large chicken breast, thinly sliced
¼ tin haricot beans
Curry paste
1½ microwave rice pouches
Same as the night before, except diced carrot this time and rather than cooking the rice in the microwave, add the rice into the pan at the end and cook through.
Nights Three & Four: Pesto Chicken Pasta
Really just a swap of carb, veg and sauce…for the one pan. An extra pan for cooking the pasta, or just use more rice pouches.
Onion, courgette, mushrooms
1 fresh chicken breast per night, thinly sliced
Remaining haricot beans split between the two nights
1 tub pesto per night
Pasta of choice, cooked, drained and then added to the pan if there is space in order to coat the pasta with the sauce
Last weeks post in case you missed it:
Lastly, if you ever find yourself in Val Thorens….
Few words on the shops in Val Thorens:
We found quite a few supermarkets, small by French standards, however, packed to the gunnels with various nooks and crannies used to good effect. The nature of the resort means that you can easily go in one door and come out on another floor.
My recommendations are:
Carrefour Montagne on rue de carron, there are several ways in to it via the back street, and the main bus station. It felt the cheapest and best available produce
Another Carrefour Montagne here, same setup.
My favourite was the Sherpa... a bit of a walk from where we were staying. It felt slightly more upmarket, like a cheese and meat counter.
Don’t think we have curry paste in pouches in the US. Trip sounds fun. Although after staring at snowbanks for 3 months, I’ve had enough.