Dish

64 DISH

Fried Chicken

A golden crunchy crumb coats tender juicy thigh meat for a real

finger-licking treat – one batch never seems enough.

500 grams boneless

chicken thighs, skin off

½ cup thick, plain yoghurt

2 cloves garlic, crushed

juice 1 large lime

1 teaspoon sea salt

1–2 teaspoons hot sauce,

eg green tabasco or chipotle

or more to taste

To cook

vegetable oil, for cooking

½ cup fine semolina

½ cup plain flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon each ground cumin

and smoked paprika

sea salt and ground pepper

Cut the chicken into large bite-sized pieces. You should have

about 20 pieces. Combine the remaining ingredients in a bowl,

add the chicken and stir together. Cover and refrigerate for

1–2 hours maximum.

Preheat the oven to 100°C.

To cook: Heat 6cm of oil in a deep, medium-sized saucepan until

a cube of bread dropped into the oil sizzles and is lightly golden in

20 seconds or until it reaches 170°C on a sugar thermometer.

Place all the remaining ingredients in a bowl and season with salt

and pepper. Lift each piece of chicken out of the yoghurt sauce

and coat in the flour mixture, shaking off the excess.

In batches, so you don’t overcrowd the pan, carefully place in

the oil and cook for 4 minutes, turning regularly to cook evenly

on both sides (I do 5–6 pieces per batch). Remove and place on

paper towels then place in the oven to keep warm.

Repeat with the remaining pieces, ensuring the oil reheats again

between batches.

To serve: We served ours with pickled jalapeños and stirred

chipotle sauce into mayonnaise for dipping. Serves 4–6

Corn and Cannellini Bean Salsa on

Grilled Cos Lettuce

Not a conventional way of serving lettuce but this lightly grilled
version is delicious topped with the corn salsa and almond crema.

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 teaspoons dried tarragon

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 small red onion,

finely chopped

1 cup frozen corn kernels

400-gram tin cooked cannellini

beans, drained and rinsed

8 cherry tomatoes,

roughly chopped

sea salt and ground pepper

To s e r v e

3 tightly formed cos lettuces

olive oil

juice 1 lime

small handful fresh basil leaves

Almond Crema, see

recipe below

toasted sliced almonds

Heat the oil in a large sauté pan and add the garlic, tarragon,
cumin seeds and the onion. Season and cook until the onion is
soft. Increase the heat and add the corn and cook until lightly
golden. Stir in the beans and tomatoes. Set aside to cool.
To assemble: Remove any straggly outside leaves and cut the cos
in half or quarters if large, making sure each piece is attached at
the stem end or they will fall apart.

Lightly brush the cut sides with oil and season with salt and
pepper. Heat a ridged grill plate and when hot, sear the lettuce
on the cut sides for 1 minute. Transfer to a large platter.

Stir the lime juice and basil into the corn salad and spoon over
the lettuce. Drizzle with some of the Almond Crema and toasted
almonds. Serve the remaining crema separately. Serves 4–6

Almond Crema

Use this versatile sauce as a dip for crudité, serve with fish and
lamb or drizzle over grain salads.

½ cup raw blanched almonds

soaked in cold water

for 12 hours

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon honey

1 chipotle chilli in adobo

sauce, or more to taste for

a spicer version

½ cup almond milk or

regular milk

2 tablespoons sour cream

Drain the almonds and place in a blender with the salt, honey,
chilli and ¼ cup of the milk.

Blend until coarsely chopped then add the remaining milk and
blend until smooth. Add the sour cream and blend again.

Taste and season, if needed. Makes about ¾ cup