oven roasted chicken shawarma
served with hummus, radish, red onion pickles and tangy green herb sauce
Chicken shawarma served with hummus, radish, red onion pickles and green herb sauce
Serve: 4
Ingredients:
Meat
1kg chicken thighs (8 pieces)
130g plain yoghurt
40g harissa
3 garlic cloves
10g lemon juice
lemon zest from a whole lemon
30g extra virigin olive oil
5g coriander seeds
5g cumin seeds
10g paprika
3g cinnamon
5g turmeric
5g black peppercorns
10g sea salt
Hummus
300g dry chickpeas
30g tahini
30g lemon juice
3 garlic cloves
150g cold water
baking soda (about 2 tablespoons)
sea salt
Green herb sauce
60g fresh coriander
20g fresh parsley
30g extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves
30g lemon juice
10g pickled green chillis (~3 pieces)
3g cumin seeds
sea salt
Pickles
5 radishes (~70g)
2 red onions (~100g)
4 red chillis (~5g)
3 garlic cloves
200ml white vinegar
200 ml water
15g white sugar
3g anise seeds
3g black peppercorns
sea salt
For serving
1 red onion
fresh mint
fermented green chillis
Extra notes:
Soak the dry chickpeas for about 12 hours
Marinate the chicken thighs overnight for extra flavour and to tenderise the meat
Prepare radish and red onion pickles a day ahead
For this chicken shawarma recipe, I highly suggest using whole spices instead of powdered versions. Whole spices retain their flavour and aroma much longer, ensuring a richer, more robust taste of your dish.
Method:
Chickpeas
Place dry chickpeas in a large bowl and cover them with cold water (ensure to add enough water - around a third of their volume, otherwise, the chickpeas soak it up too quickly). Stir in a tablespoon of baking soda, mix and leave it to soak overnight. Adding baking soda increases the pH of the cooking water, making the chickpea skin loosen up faster. Removing the skin ensures the hummus's extra smoothiness.
Prepping chicken + marinating
In a mortar, crush the seeds separately into a fine powder (check the photo below) making a circular grinding motion with a pestle - be careful, if you smash in a vertical motion the seeds might fall out.
Remove the skin from the chicken thighs by pulling it off with your hands. To debone the chicken, place it bone-side up on a chopping board and score a line along the bone. Use a sharp knife to cut underneath and around the bone. Keep the bones to prepare chicken stock for your next meal. Remember to thoroughly clean the working area with hot, soapy water.
Grate the lemon peel with a microplane, then cut the lemon in half and juice it. Mince the garlic.
Place the deboned and deskinned chicken thighs in a bowl along with plain yoghurt, olive oil, minced garlic, lemon peel and juice, harissa, and spices in a bowl. Season with salt.
Toss all the ingredients and press down the chicken ensuring all the cavities are covered with the marinate. Place a cling film over the bowl and refrigerate it overnight.
Radish and red onion pickles
Combine water, white vinegar, sugar, anise seeds, black peppercorns and sea salt in a pot. Bring the mixture to a boil and simmer until the sugar has dissolved.
Thinly slice the red onion using a mandolin. Cut half of the radishes in half and slice the remaining half, keeping the stalks intact. Peel and thinly slice the garlic.
Place the red onions, radishes, garlic and whole red chillis in a bowl.
Pour the hot brine over the vegetables. Once the brine cools down - keep the pickle in the fridge.
Green sauce
Grind cumin seeds into a fine powder in a mortar.
Roughly chop coriander and parsley.
Add all of the ingredients in a food processor and blend. Season with salt. If you find the dip too thick, add a bit of cold water.
Hummus
Drain the soaking water, rinse the chickpeas, and place them in a pot. Add plenty of fresh cold water and a tablespoon of baking powder, then bring it to a boil. Simmer for about an hour or until the chickpeas are soft and begin to slightly disintegrate. Don’t worry about overcooking them—that’s exactly what we want.
Meanwhile, blend lemon juice with peeled garlic to tone down the garlicky pungent flavour.
Once the chickpeas are ready, stir them with a wooden spoon to loosen up the skin further. Wait a few seconds for the skin to float up to the top, then use a slotted spoon to scoop the skin out and discard it.
Transfer the chickpeas to a bowl, add fresh water, and massage them. Use the slotted spoon again to remove the skin. If some of the chickpeas are still covered in the skin, don’t worry! Drain the water.
Transfer peeled chickpeas to a bowl. Add the garlicky lemon paste, and tahini and blend them all into a rough paste. Add cold water and blend further until it’s smooth. If you prefer the hummus to be more runny, gradually add more cold water or ice and blend. Season with salt to taste.
Roast chicken
Set the oven to 190°C.
Lay on the tin foil on a baking tray.
Cut one red onion in half and place it cut-side down on the baking tray. To achieve a steady spit place two skewers through the onion piece (check the photo below).
Put the tray with skewers in the oven to check if they are not too tall to fit. Trim the tops if needed.
Start layering the chicken thighs on the skewers while rotating each thigh by 90° pressing down tightly. Once you add all of the meat, top with the other onion half and press down. To prevent skewer tops from burning, wrap the ends with tin foil (this isn’t shown in the photos below).
Cook the chicken for about 1 hour at 190°C or until the chicken is thoroughly cooked (the internal temperature of the chicken should reach 75°C). Check and turn around the tray of meat every 20 minutes to ensure all the sides are evenly coľoured. The chicken should be charred on the outside (see the photo below).
Serving
Vertically slice the chicken while holding the skewers with one hand and with the other a serrated knife (see the photo below). Once you complete a slice, rotate the spit and slice again. Combine all of the meat.
Transfer the hummus onto a big shallow plate, followed by chicken cuts. Add radish and red onion pickles, green sauce, chillis and fresh mint on the side. Serve with warm flatbread.
