senthisgeneralTariqibnZiyadona ‘go
see’missiontotheIberianPeninsulahe
disobeyedordersandinsteadinvadedand
conqueredtheaffluentsoutheastof
PortugalandsouthernSpain.Thisdishis
forhimbecausetheinitialideabehindit
wasverydifferenttothefinished– andfar
moresuccessful– result.Whowouldhave
thoughtcurdledyoghurtcouldbeso
delicious?Alsothewaythegoldenslopes
ofthechickenthighsriseupfromthepan
remindsmeofGibraltar,therockisland
actually named after the general.“
(^1) / 2 cup(125ml)extravirgin olive oil, plus
extratodrizzle
10 (approx1.4kgtotalweight) chicken
thighfillets,skinon
70gharissapaste(or to taste), plus
extratoserve
500gnaturalyoghurt
(^1) / 4 bunchcoriander,leavespicked
110g toasted slivered almonds
Preheattheovento240°C.
Heathalfoftheoilin a largefrypan
overhighheat.Seasonthechickenall
over.Addhalfofthechicken,skin-side
down,andcookfor5-6minutesuntil
theskinis goldenandcrisp.Transfer
toa trayorplate.Repeatwithremaining
(^1) / 4 cup(60ml)oil and chicken. Drain off
excessoil.
Placetheharissaandyoghurtin a bowl,
seasontotasteandstirtocombine.
Transferyoghurtmixturetoa large,
ovenproof5L-capacity(27cmx 40cm)
bakingdish.Placethechicken,skin-side
up,ontheyoghurt mixture and drizzle with
extra olive oil.
Reduceoventemperatureto150°C.
Bakechickenfor30-35minutesuntil
cookedthrough.Theyoghurtmixture
willcurdledeliciouslyandsplit,leaving
thecurdsandthechickenwheysauce.
Scatterwithcorianderleaves,toasted
almondsandspoonover some extra
harissa, if desired.
ARROZDECAMARAO
(RICEWITH PRAWNS)
SERVES 4
“Thisunderstated,verycleanand
rathersoupyricedishis likethe
chickensoupofcoastalPortugal
- comfortfoodatitsbest– butwith
theflexibilitytowelcomeallmanner
offish(likemonkfish)andshellfish
(likeclams).Originallytherewasgoing
tobeblueeyein therecipebutit
doesn’tneedit.Neitherdoesit need
theprawn-headperiperiif youcan’t be
botheredandjust want a clean,
light supper.”
4 cups(1L)good-qualityfishstock
5 vine-ripenedtomatoes, base scored,
coreremoved
1 cup(250ml)extravirginolive oil,
plusextratodrizzle
12 largegreenkingprawns
4 longredchillies,thinlysliced,
plusextraslicedtoserve
6 garliccloves,finelychopped
1 largeredonion,finelychopped
Zestandjuiceof1 lemon, plus extra
wedgestoserve(^1) / 2 bunchcoriander,finelychopped,
plusextraleavestoserve
230g short grain rice, washed
Placethestockina largesaucepan
overhighheatandbringtotheboil.
Addthetomatoesandblanchfor
30 seconds-1minuteuntiltheskin,
wherescored,beginstocomeaway
fromthetomato.Removefromthepan
andsetasidetocool.Reservethestock
andkeepwarm.Peeltomatoand
discardskin.Oncetomatoeshave
cooledcompletely coarsely grate and
setaside.
Heat^1 / 3 cup(80ml)oftheoliveoilin
a large,high-sided,non-stickfrypanover
highheat.Addtheprawnsandcook,
tossingoccasionallyfor3-5minutesuntil
justcookedandtheshellschangecolour.
Removeprawnsfromthepanandset
asidethefourbest-lookingprawns.
Takingcareoftheheat,peel,cleanand
deveinremainingprawns.Finelychop
themeatandreturntheshellsandheads
totheprawnpanovermedium-high
heat.Panroast,tossingfrequently,fora
further8-10minutesuntiltheheads are
crispyandslightlycharred.
Tomaketheprawn-headperiperi,
placetheshellsina blenderwiththelong
redchillies,3 garlicclovesand100ml
oliveoil.Blend,scrapingdownthesides
occasionally,untilyouforma smooth
paste.Drizzleinextraoliveoilif needed
toloosen.Seasontotaste. Returnthe
prawnpantohighheat.Addthepaste
andfryfor1-2minutesuntiloilstartsto
renderout.Transferthetoa smallserving
bowlandscatterwithextraslicedchilli.
Setasideuntilreadytoserve.
Tocooktherice,heattheremaining
70mloliveoilina largeheavy-based
saucepan over medium-high heat. Add
“WHOWOULDHAVE THOUGHTCURDLEDYOGHURTCOULD BE
SODELICIOUS?ALSO,THEWAYTHEGOLDENSLOPESOFTHE
CHICKEN THIGHSRISEUPFROMTHEPANREMINDS ME OF
GIBRALTAR,THE ROCK ISLAND.”