Greek...ish Chicken

Hi. It's Nic here, once again invading Syrie's blog.

While Syrie and I both share the cooking in the house, we are not equals. When Syrie cooks, it is a celebration. When I cook, it's a bit of a lottery. I don't use recipes and I don't really even keep a mental tab of what I'm throwing into the pot.

So when, a little while ago, Syrie turned to me after eating a mouthful of a chicken dish I had just concocted and exclaimed how delighted she was, I was quite pleased with myself. She really meant it. My self-congratulation, however, was short-lived. Immediately after her compliment, she said, in an unmistakably threatening tone: "You had better remember how you made it." She really meant it. I was in trouble.

So, you can imagine how horrified I was, a few weeks later, when I had naively assumed that I was in the clear, when deciding what to have for dinner, she innocently said: "How about that Greek chicken dish you made recently?"

"What Greek chicken dish would that be, darling?" Her look eloquently, unmistakable said: "You know bloody well what Greek chicken dish and I want it for dinner and if I don't have it for dinner, you will find out exactly how a shish kebab feels."

So, gingerly, I stepped into the kitchen and tried to reconstruct a process I had completed effortlessly only a few weeks earlier, but now had nothing more than a dubious and muddy recollection of. I asked myself abstract and ultimately unhelpful questions like: "What would I do if I were me three weeks ago?"

Eventually, I managed to bluff my way through it and the result was to Syrie's satisfaction. This time, I was sure to take notes of what I was doing, and here they are. I should note that I was making extra for our lunch the next day, so this recipe will serve 4.

Greek chicken recipe (serves 4)

1kg boneless, skin-on chicken thighs
7 good-sized cloves of garlic
1 tbsp of fresh dill
2 tbs olive oil
1/2 cup natural yogurt
1/2 tbs chili flakes
1/2 tbs coriander seeds
1/2 tbs fennel seeds
1/2 tbs salt
1/2 tbs black pepper
1/2 lemon (juice of)

Method:

1. Grind the coriander, fennel and pepper with a mortar & pestle;
2. Finely chop the garlic and the dill. Leave aside 2 cloves worth of garlic for the Tzatziki;
3. Mix the chicken and everything else in a big bowl and let it sit there until you get really hungry and just can't stand it anymore;
4. Heat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius;
5. Place the chicken in a Pyrex baking dish (skin side up);
6. Bake for 40 minutes; and then
7. Turn the grill on and blast it for 5 minutes or until the skin is golden-crispy.

Now, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking: "What is it about that chicken that is remotely Greek?" Good question. The truth is, I really don't know. I mean, the dill possibly... and the fennel I guess.

The fact is, cuisine gets a little bit mixed up in that Eastern Mediterranean region anyway. It could be anything, but it went very well with a Greek salad and Tzatziki so it was, by default, Greek.

Pilaf Rice

1.5 cups of rice (I use Basmati)
3 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
1 tsp of fresh dill
1/2 tbs of butter

Method:

1. Wash and drain the rice well.
2. Melt the butter in a pot and then add the rice and stir to coat the grains.
3. Add the chicken stock and bring to the boil then lower the heat and cover the pot with a lid.
4. The rice should take about 10 minutes to cook.
5. Once it's ready, stir through the dill and keep warm until the rest of the meal is ready.
   

Salad and Tzatziki

Now, I'm not going to bore you with a detailed process for these side dishes. They're very simple. While the chicken is cooking, you'll have plenty of time to whip them up.

Tzatziki

1. Get a large cucumber, peel it, seed it and dice it;
2. Put it in a bowl with about 2 cups of natural yogurt;
3. Add the 2 cloves of chopped garlic left over from your chicken prep;
4. Add about 2 tsp each of fresh chopped mint and dill - maybe a pinch of ground fennel if you're that way inclined;
5. Add about 1 tbs of extra virgin olive oil;
6. Stir it.

Greek Salad

Iceberg lettuce
Cherry tomatoes
Spanish/ red onion
Feta (I like sheeps')
Kalamata olives (if you have them handy)

Bung them all together in a bowl, drizzle some extra virgin olive oil and squeeze a lemon on top and Aesop's your uncle!

Comments

[Patricia Scarpin]

Hi, Nic, nice to meet you!

The chicken looks so good! Nicely browned... Yummy!