Brazilian chicken coxinha

Add a splash of oil to a frying pan and place over a medium heat. Once hot, add the carrot and half of the diced onion and sweat for 2-3 minutes

Add the bay leaves, cold chicken stock and chicken breasts to the pan and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes

Remove from the liquor and allow to cool. Once cool enough to handle, shred into pieces using your hands and place in a mixing bowl. Pass the cooking liquor through a sieve and reserve

Add the lime juice and cream cheese to the mixing bowl. In a small frying pan, add the butter and sweat the remaining diced onion for 2-3 minutes, then add the garlic and sweat for a further 1-2 minutes. Tip into the chicken mix, stir to combine and season to taste

Measure out 360ml of the strained chicken liquor - top up with water if you don't have enough. Bring the liquid to the boil, gradually stir in the flour and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring vigorously as you go

Once the mix resembles a stiff dough, cook for a further 5 minutes, constantly moving the dough around the pan. Remove from the pan, then set aside in the fridge for 1 hour

To form the coxinhas, coat your hands in flour and roll the chilled dough into golfball-sized balls. Hollow out the middle of each and press 1 1/2 teaspoons of chicken filling into each ball. Carefully press the dough around the filling so it is totally encased

Flour your hands again and gently roll the balls between your fingers to create the distinctive pear shape. Add the eggs to a bowl and the breadcrumbs to another, then dip each coxinha into the egg mix, followed by the breadcrumbs to coat. Once they are all coated, set aside in the fridge for 1 hour to chill

Deep-fry the coxinhas in batches at 160°C until golden brown all over. Serve warm