The Recipe
Serves: 4 people
Preparation: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 20-25 minutes
“The use of za'atar as a seasoning dates back thousands of years, with references to the herb mixture found in ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian texts. It was also mentioned in the Bible as a symbol of prosperity and was used in Jewish religious rituals.”
Israeli couscous or ptitium is a type of toasted pasta shaped into little balls. It was developed between 1949-1959 as a wheat-based substitute for rice. Ben Gurion, Israel's first Prime Minister contacted a food manufacturer to develop it when rice supplies were scarce.
Despite the fact that I cook Latin American food for a living, I would have to say my comfort food is either Italian or Middle Eastern. I think I enjoy the idea of many dishes prepared and plopped in the middle of the table for all to share. In Middle Eastern cuisine I love the use of warm spices such as cumin and when it is combined with tangy flavours like preserved lemon or pomegranate, it really is a winning combination.
This dish was invented and prepared for filming for a competition I currently am in called eatliststar. It contains a few base elements such as za'atar and pomegranate molasses that are hard to come by in Singapore so I decided to make my own. Recipes for these are found at the bottom of this post.
INGREDIENTS
Za'atar Chicken
8 chicken thighs, bone out, skin on or 4 chicken breasts, skin off
16g/4heaped teaspoons of za'atar spice mix
50g good extra virgin olive oil
4g/1tsp sea salt
Cous Cous Salad
160g Israeli couscous
350g water
½ tsp/4g good sea salt
½ tsp or 130g large yellow capsicum
8pcs or 100g ruby red cherry tomatoes
15g flat-leaf parsley leaves
15g mint leaves
30g of rocket
70g black or golden raisins
20g extra virgin olive oil
1 – 2 tbsp /5-8g pomegranate molasses
½- 1 tsp sea salt
METHOD
Chicken
Trim chicken of excess fat and sinew
Mix olive oil, salt and za’atar together and smother all over the chicken.
Allow to marinate while you prepare the salad
Once salad is prepared, heat frypan over a medium heat. Fry the chicken (skin side down first) until golden, turn the chicken over and fry until cooked through
Set aside to allow to cool slightly. Cut thighs in half diagonally. If you are using chicken breast, cut into quarters.
Cous Cous
Boil salt and water together in a saucepan. Once the water is boiling add couscous, turn the temperature down to low, and cover with a lid.
Allow to cook for 5-8minutes until couscous is tender.
Drain couscous and rinse with cold water. Set aside in a large bowl
Deseed and slice capsicum into rough 1cm size cubes
Cut cherry tomatoes into quarters
Roughly chop mint and parsley leaves
Add capsicum, tomatoes, raisins, herbs, rocket, olive oil and salt to the cooked couscous
Finally add the pomegranate molasses and plate onto serving dishes
Top the salad with the chicken and garnish with pomegranate seeds, a good spoon of labneh or yoghurt and a sprinkling of extra za’atar
You can also check out the video here.
* Substitute Notes
If you don’t have these exact ingredients on hand, you can add or play around with whatever you have. The za'atar mix can be replaced with any kind of spice blend and pomegranate molasses can be substituted for a good thick balsamic. The Israeli couscous can be substituted for regular couscous, barley, small-sized pasta, or even quinoa
*Ingredient Notes
Za’atar is the name of a Middle Eastern herb and the name of a spice mix. Maimonides, a 12th Century Jewish philosopher said it was fantastic brain food. Variations use fresh thyme, marjoram, or oregano. This is a dry spice mix that I can keep in my pantry to last a little longer.
ZA’ATAR RECIPE- makes about 100g
4tblsp/ 40g white sesame seeds
4tblsp/ 25g sumac,
2tsp/8g sea salt
2tblsp/12g cumin seeds
4tblsp/10g dried thyme
Toast the sesame seeds until golden, set aside, and allow them to cool. Toast the cumin seeds. Rely on your sense of smell rather than on the colour of the cumin. Blend all the ingredients together and store them in a sealed glass jar.
POMEGRANATE MOLASSES is a sweet and sour syrup that is used in many middle eastern countries where pomegranates are widely available. It differs in flavour profile depending on the type of pomegranates used.
Recipe - makes about 180mls
330mls pomegranate juice
45g lemon juice
60g sugar
Put all the ingredients in a deep heavy-based saucepan. Boil until the sugar is dissolved. Turn down the heat and allow to simmer for about 40 minutes until it is reduced to a nice syrupy consistency. Allow cooling slightly before pouring into a clean glass jar with a tight seal.