Chamoula Chicken

I hope you kept the hung yoghurt whey from the Torched and Soused Mackeral recipe a couple of weeks ago.

Chamoula

4 Chicken legs with Thigh and Drum
30 g Garlic
100 g Parsley
100 g Coriander
5 g Chili Flakes
50 g Sumac
20 ml Lemon Juice
30 g Fresh Ginger

Hummus

200 g Chickpeas
50 g Tahini
50 ml Lemon Juice
50 g Garlic
50 ml Olive Oil

Gozleme

250 g Hung Yoghurt
200 g Plain Flour
5 g Cumin Seeds
100 g Frozen Spinach
50 g Feta Cheese
100 g Long Chiva Chilies

Before we do anything, we need to brine and that’s where the use of the whey (the liquid from the yoghurt) comes in.

First, take the chicken leg and take out the thigh bone. Tunnel bone the drumstick and keep it on the top for garnish, being careful not to pierce the skin. Boil your whey, add 3% salt and let cool. Brine your boneless chicken legs for 12 hours.

In the meantime, make the Chamoula. (It’s pronounced with a SH — sh a moula)

Making the Chamoula

Blend everything together in a blender.

Zhoug Is Chamoula’s spicy brother, (leave out the ginger and sumac and add more chili flakes and that’s Zhoug) but we like balance and Chamoula has balance and health benefits.

Take your chicken out of the brine and marinate for another 12 hours in the Chamoula. Keep a little back for dressing the dish later.

Refrigerate the Chicken Chamoula and move on to the hummus, chefs.

Making the Hummus

Soak the chickpea and change the water 5 times, then add to cold water and bring to a boil for 20 minutes. Shock in cold water to remove the skins, and re-boil till soft. We boil with 1% salt but you can add more if you’re a salty person.

Let the chickpeas cool. When soft, add to a blender with lemon juice, garlic, and tahini plus a little of the chickpea liquid as this makes it smooth and creamy. Aquafaba!

Blend till smooth and chill baby, chill!

Making the Gozleme

We use frozen spinach. It’s better than fresh as it has more vitamins as picked, blanched, chilled, and packed within 4 hours, Sometimes there are great things in them there freezer sections.

Drain, and squeeze the spinach. Add the feta and a good twist of black pepper.

Now, get the hung yogurt and add the flour. Knead until all flour is incorporated and then add the cumin seeds. Cut into six pieces, roll into balls, and wrap each ball in a tea towel.

Now remember the brine? This is the same as we use for lactose fermentation, but we do increase the salt to 3%, boil the whey, add the salt, then a rolling boil, and then cool.

Get a jar and clean it. Now char the long chilies, or any chilies really, and peel the skin. Squash into a jar, add the brine and place into a darkened room for at least 2 months.

Then put the jar into the fridge and you have fermented chilies for a while, great and everything.

Roast the chicken legs at 170 degrees for 20 minutes, then whack it up to 210 degrees for 10 minutes, take them out, and rest.

Roll the Gozleme dough out into an oval shape, fill half with the spinach feta filling, and fold over. Use a cutter to get a nice round shape, and brush with olive oil.

In a flat or griddle pan, cook both sides of your Gozleme, whilst doing this add your cooked chicken leg to a BBQ for the charred umami flavour. Don’t be afraid to burn it as the meat has been brined and won’t dry out.

Plating the Chamoula Chicken

Now chefs, let’s plate this bad boy!

If you read carefully you should have started 5 weeks ago ……but here’s one made earlier.

Smear your plate with hummus and drizzle olive oil and Chamoula over it. Slice your chicken leg, and place it on top. Cut the Gozleme and place by the side with the fermented chilies and grilled lemon wedges.

Garnish with fresh parsley and coriander flowers, rocher hung yoghurt with a sprinkling of sumac and you my friends can have my job.

Send me pictures or better still come and eat 10-10-23.