Cooking Together Middle Eastern – Batata Hara; Saffron Chicken;
Cooking Together Middle Eastern Recipes
We hope you enjoyed your cooking together with us, below are the recipes – if you have any questions for chef please do ask and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
We Cooked:
- Starter: Zaatar Halloumi, Khobz Flatbread, Shirazi Salad
- Main: Saffron Chicken with Batata Harra and Moroccan Cherry Tomato Sauce;
- Dessert: Click here for the Food Sorcery favourites
Halloumi Zaatar
Ingredients – Serves 2:
- – 1x block of halloumi, sliced into thick wedges
- – 1tsp of olive oil
- – 2tbsp of hummus
- – 1tbsp of zaatar
- – Chopped herbs to garnish (coriander, parsley and mint)
Method:
- Preheat a non-stick pan on medium heat and add the oil.
- Sauté the halloumi on both sides until golden brown.
- Leave on the side to cool own slightly and spread hummus on top.
- Finish with a sprinkle of zaatar (or lemons zest & cumin seeds) and chopped herbs.
- For a spicy taste use Harrisa Paste.
Khobz Flatbread
Ingredients – Makes 10
- 350ml of warm water (might need a little bit more, depending on strength of your flour)
- 1tsp of fast action dried yeast
- 2tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
- 600g strong white bread flour (plus extra for dusting)
- 1tbsp of caster sugar
- 1tsp of fine salt
Method
Pour the water into a mixing bowl, stir in the yeast until dissolved.
Add the oil, flour, sugar and salt, mix everything and form a quite firm dough, adding more water if too dry, more flour if too wet.
Leave for 10 minutes covered before kneading it until smooth.
Transfer into a floured bowl, cover and leave to proof for 60 minutes.
Divide the dough into 10 equal pieces and shape into balls.
Cover the balls and rest for 10 minutes.
Flour the surface and roll them about 1 cm thick.
Cover the rolled flatbread and rest for another 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, place a non-stick frying pan on medium to high heat and get it smoking hot.
Place one or two flatbread at time into your pan and cook on each side for roughly 2 minutes.
Good indicator, when to flip, is if start seeing bubbles on top.
Get a clean tea towel and stack your flatbreads in it and wrap tightly.
Rest in the towel for 5 minutes, this will soften the flatbreads.
Batata Hara
Ingredients – Serves 2:
- – 6 medium-sized gold potatoes, peeled
- – 3 tbsp olive oil
- – 2 garlic cloves, minced
- – 2 tsp coriander seeds or a little more than 1 tsp ground coriander
- – 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, more for later
- – 2 tsp ground turmeric
- – 1 lime, juice of
- – 1 cup chopped fresh coriander leaves
- – 1 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
- – 1 cup chopped fresh dill
- – Salt and pepper
Method:
- Peel the potatoes and place them in a large pot with enough water to cover them. Bring to a boil and let them cook in the boiling water for 10 minutes or so. The potatoes should be cooked through but still firm.
- Drain the potatoes and let them cool briefly. Cut the potatoes in smaller bite-size cubes or pieces.
- Heat the olive oil in a cast-iron skillet on medium. Stir in the garlic, red pepper flakes and coriander seeds. Cook for 2-3 minutes then add the turmeric and the lime juice.
- Toss in the potatoes and mix well to coat. Add ½ of the fresh cilantro, parsley, and fresh dill. Cook for 4 more minutes. Add salt and black pepper to your taste.
- Remove from heat and top with more red pepper flakes and the remaining fresh herbs. You can serve this potato salad warm or at room temperature.
Saffron Chicken
Ingredients – Serves 2:
- – Saffron 1 pinch
- – 1 clove of garlic, minced
- -1tsp of harissa paste
- – Juice and zest of 1 lemon
- – Plain yoghurt 2tbsp
- – Salt & Pepper
- – Chicken, either 2 boneless thighs each or a thigh and a leg on the bone
Method:
- Mix the yoghurt, saffron, harissa, garlic and lemon zest and juice with some seasoning. Taste and adjust accordingly. Smear all over the chicken. Set to one side for a while or even cover and fridge over night.
- Using a non-stick pan pan, sear the chicken and make sure you get plenty of colour on it. You can then pop the whole pan into the oven for about 20minutes at 185C. .
Moroccan Roasted Cherry Tomato Sauce
Ingredients:
- – 1 tablespoon olive oil
- – 1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced (about 1/2 cup)
- – 1 clove garlic, finely chopped 1 tsp
- – 1 red chilli, chopped
- – 1/2 teaspoon harissa paste
- – 1/2 tablespoon tomato paste plus a pinch of sugar
- – 2 cups cherry tomatoes (1 pint) (about 3/4 lb)
- – 1/4 cup water or more as needed
- – 2 tablespoon chopped fresh coriander
- – 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
- – 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- – 1/2 teaspoon paprika or smoked paprika I use half and half
Method:
- Heat oil in medium pan. Sauté onions for 4-6 minutes until tender and lightly browned. Add garlic, spices, tomato paste (with a pinch of sugar) and harissa. Stir and cook for 1 minute.
- Add cherry tomatoes, chilli and water. Bring to boil. Then lower heat to simmer, stirring occasionally. The total time will be about 10 minutes,after 5 minutes, help burst tomatoes by gently pressing with spatula or large spoon to burst them (careful not to squirt yourself).
- Stir in coriander. Continue cooking until tomatoes form a sauce the consistency you like. More cooking will make it thicker. Add more water to thin it out if needed. Taste and adjust seasonings e.g., more salt, sugar, harissa.
Shirazi Salad
Ingredients – Serves 2:
- – Fresh Parsley, Coriander, Mint and Chives
- – 1/2 a large red onion finely diced
- – 1/2 cucumber diced
- – 100g cherry tomatoes halved
- – 2 radishes sliced
- – Splash of olive oil
- – Pomegranate seeds
- – Juice 1/2 lemon
- – Salt & Pepper
Method:
- Prepare your vegetables, rip up your herbs (or rough chop, especially the chives).
- Mix all together, then add the lemon juice, olive oil and seasoning – taste, adjust, serve!
Hummus
Ingredients – Makes 1 cup:
- – 1 can chickpeas
- – 1/4 cup (60 ml) fresh lemon juice, 1 large lemon
- – 1/4 cup (60 ml) well-stirred tahini
- – 1 small garlic clove, minced
- – 2 tablespoons (30 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
- – 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- – Salt to taste
- – 2 to 3 tablespoons (30 to 45 ml) water
- – Dash ground paprika or sumac
Method:
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine the tahini and lemon juice and process for 1 minute, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl then process for 30 seconds more. This extra time helps “whip” or “cream” the tahini, making the hummus smooth and creamy.
- Add the olive oil, minced garlic, cumin, and a 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the whipped tahini and lemon juice.
- Process for 30 seconds, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl then process another 30 seconds or until well blended.
- Open, drain, and rinse the chickpeas.
- Add half of the chickpeas to the food processor and process for 1 minute. Scrape sides and bottom of the bowl, then add remaining chickpeas and process until thick and quite smooth; 1 to 2 minutes.
- Most likely the hummus will be too thick or still have tiny bits of chickpea. To fix this, with the food processor turned on, slowly add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water until you reach the perfect consistency.
- Taste for salt and adjust as needed.
- Serve hummus with a drizzle of olive oil and dash of paprika.
- Store homemade hummus in an airtight container and refrigerate up to one week.
Mint Dip
Ingredients – Serves 2:
- – Small pot yoghurt
- – Half cucumber
- – Small bunch mint, small bunch parsley (from above)
- – Salt & Pepper
Method:
- Grate cucumber, chop herbs, mix together with the yoghurt (option to add spices)
Use the link above to explore the Food Sorcery favourite dessert recipes
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