Chermoula Chicken & Jewelled Rice
CHERMOULA CHICKEN INGREDIENTS
4 Chicken breasts (suprémes)
3/4 tsp each of cumin & coriander seeds
2 garlic cloves
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp finely grated lemon zest
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tsp smoked paprika
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1 whole red chilli with seeds
1 cup each of coriander & parsley leaves with stems
1/2 cup mint leaves
METHOD
Toast coriander & cumin seeds,until brown and fragrant (approx 2min.) Place all the ingredient apart from the parsley, coriander and mint in a food processor/blender and blend till almost smooth. Add the herbs and blend until the herbs are mixed, but not completely smooth.
Marinate the chicken breasts and chill for a min of 2 hours. To cook the chicken, simply seal both sides in a pan and place in the oven skin side up at 180•c for about 18-22 min.
JEWELLED RICE INGREDIENTS
1 tbsp butter
3 tbsp olive oil
3 cardamom pods
1 bay leaf & ½ cinnamon stick
100g basmati rice, rinsed and drained
50g cooked puy lentils
1 heaped tbsp pomegranate seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 onions, finely sliced
METHOD
Fry cardamom, bay and cinnamon in butter and ½ tbsp oil for 2 mins. Stir in rice to toast for 1 min, then cover with 200ml water. Bring to the boil, cover, turn heat down and simmer for 5 mins. Once almost all the water has been absorbed by the rice, turn off the heat add the lentils and sit for 5 mins.
Meanwhile, fry cumin seeds, onions and some salt in the remaining oil until golden and beginning to crisp – this will take around 15 mins. Then spread onions on kitchen paper to remove excess oil. Remove whole spices to serve if preferred.
To make the Harissa Yoghurt, mix together 200ml Greek style yogurt and 2 tsp Belazu rose harissa
Serve scattered with some crispy onion and pomegranate and finish with a dollop of the harissa yogurt.