Spiced chicken breast with peppers, couscous and chargrilled aparagus
THIS is a great spring dish which we often serve at the City of Manchester Stadium Ladies’ Luncheons.
Chicken is always a popular main course, and the Moroccan influences of the spice mixture of cumin seeds, coriander seeds and sweet paprika give it that little bit of punch.
The accompanying chargrilled asparagus (in season during May) and some great Mediterranean flavours from the red peppers guarantee it’s a surefire winner.
The herby couscous adds more flavours and texture and is a good source of carbohydrate to make this a perfectly balanced main course.
You could even load up this little meal into a container and eat it cold as a picnic, with a bottle of chilled white wine.
Don’t be put off by the ingredients list or the lengthy method – it’s all quite simple as most of the dish can be prepared in advance.
Ingredients
Chicken breast: 4 chicken supremes/fillets with the skin on (180g each); 2 tbsp cumin seeds; 2 tbsp coriander seeds; 3 tbsp paprika; 4 tbsp vegetable/olive oil; 2 garlic cloves, crushed; roasted peppers; 2 yellow peppers; 2 red peppers; 2 tbsp olive oil.
Asparagus: 16-24 fresh asparagus stalks; 200ml olive oil.
Couscous: 250g couscous; 300ml boiling water; 1 tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped; 1 tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped; 2 tbsp olive oil; juice of half a lemon; salt and pepper.
Garnish: 4 tbsp crème fraîche; lemon juice to taste; 1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped; salt and pepper; pepper oil; one red (or green) pepper; 50ml vegetable oil; 50ml olive oil; a selection of soft herbs eg coriander, flat leaf parsley, chives etc drizzled with a little olive oil.
Method
Pepper oil: Remove the stalks and seeds from the pepper and roughly chop. Place in a food processor and blend. Remove the excess water, add the oils and blend. Pour into a sieve lined with a damp muslin cloth and leave to drip into a jug overnight.
Marinate the chicken: Grind the cumin and coriander seeds together with the garlic in a pestle and mortar, then mix together with the paprika and oil in a shallow container. Coat all sides of each piece of chicken with the spices. Cover and leave to marinade for at least one hour (or ideally, overnight).
Roasted peppers: Remove the core and seeds from the peppers and cut the flesh into large chunks. Place on a baking sheet and drizzle with the olive oil. Roast in a preheated oven at 180C (350F, Gas Mark 4) for 30 minutes or until the edges are just becoming blackened. Remove and place in a plastic bag. When cool, the skins can be easily removed and the remaining flesh roughly chopped into 1cm cubes.
Asparagus: Snap off the lower end of the asparagus stalks. Peel the outside and trim the base. Plunge into boiling water for two to three minutes. Drain, place in a shallow dish and cover with olive oil. Leave to one side until needed.
Couscous salad: Place the dry couscous in a bowl and pour over the boiling water. Leave for 10 minutes and then stir to separate the grains using a fork. Stir in the herbs, olive oil, lemon juice and peppers and season to taste. Combine the crème fraîche with the chopped parsley. Season and add a little lemon juice to taste.
Final preparation: Place a frying pan over a moderately high heat. When hot add the chicken and cook for one to two minutes on each side. Transfer the chicken to a preheated oven at 180C (350F, gas mark 4) for 20-25 minutes, until cooked through. When the chicken has only five minutes cooking time left, heat up a pan ready to chargrill the asparagus. Lift the asparagus straight from the oil into the hot pan and chargrill for a few minutes, turning occasionally.
To serve: Place a small mound of couscous in the centre of each plate and sit a piece of chicken on top. Add the asparagus and a blob of the crème fraîche dressing. Drizzle the pepper oil around and garnish with a few fresh herbs. If you prefer hot couscous, leave the its preparation until the chicken is in the oven. Reheat over a gentle heat with the olive oil and then add herbs, peppers, lemon juice and seasoning.
Published: Thu, 21 May, 2009
Comment on this article
You need to be logged in to comment. Login | Register