Lemon & Pepper Chicken With Pickled Fennel & Easy Romesco
/
Lemon & Pepper Chicken With Pickled Fennel & Easy Romesco
Ingredient
8 x boneless chicken thighs, cut into 2cm pieces
Sea salt flakes and cracked black pepper to season
Zest of 2 lemons
2 tbs Red Island extra virgin olive oil
Pickled Fennel:
2 bulbs fennel, shaved thinly, fronds reserved to garnish
1 cup white wine vinegar
½ cup caster sugar
Romesco Sauce:
350g jar charred red peppers, drained
½ 400g can crushed tomatoes
1 long red chilli, roughly sliced
1 cup roasted whole almonds, plus extra to serve
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tsp ground cumin
¼ bunch flat leaf parsley, chopped
¼ red wine vinegar
1 tbs honey
½ cup Red Island extra virgin olive oil
Method
To pickle the fennel, rub 1 teaspoon sea salt into the shaved fennel in a bowl. Heat the vinegar, sugar and ½ cup water until the sugar has dissolved, then pour it over the salted fennel. Set aside to pickle for 30 minutes.
Thread the chicken pieces onto bamboo skewers. Season the chicken with salt, pepper, lemon zest and olive oil. Heat a grill plate/pan over high heat. Add skewers and grill for 2-3 minutes each side, turning occasionally or until cooked through. Rest.
Meanwhile to make the romesco sauce, place all the ingredients into a jug of a stick blender and blitz until you have a rough sauce. Add a little extra oil if the sauce is too thick, or extra almonds if it needs thickening.
Drain the fennel from the pickling mixture and place onto the side.
To serve place the romesco sauce in a serving bowl on a platter. Serve the chicken skewers and pickled fennel beside. Garnish with extra parsley, fennel fronds, almonds and serve with lemon wedges.
Serve with warm flatbreads to make into homemade kebabs.
This recipe can also be done with grilled prawns, beef, chorizo, or cauliflower instead of the chicken.
Recipe by Courtney Roulston
