Chicken Tagine

 Chicken Tagine 

A certain mystique still surrounds the Tagine, its magical charm continues to enchant the foodies of the world. What was once concentrated in certain corners of the world is now flowing freely everywhere. It is being promoted, its mystery being unveiled by many top chefs. It is being adapted in fusion cuisine and the presence of tagines are  being felt very strongly in the culinary world. An elegant way of presenting your food, a healthy way of cooking it, simplicity and glamour all rolled into one.

1 kg/ 2.2 lb chicken pieces, bone -in that are patted dry. 

Dry Spice Mix

1 stick of cinnamon

10 to 12 cloves 

10 to 12 black peppercorns 

1tsp paprika 

2 long dry red chillies 

½ tsp saffron, dry roasted 

1tsp salt 

¼ tsp brown sugar 

2 +1 tbsp brown butter -smen

4 thinly sliced garlic cloves 

1 small fresh piece of ginger smashed

1 tbsp honey 

1 dry bay leaf 

1/2 cup fresh herbs coriander and parsley work best. 

57 g/ 2 oz olive oil

1 cup of chicken broth 

1 finely chopped fried onion 

A preserved lemon 

125 g/ 4 oz fresh green olives 

 

 Dry roast in a pan the dry spice mix -  grind until fine and then add the dry roasted saffron, salt and brown sugar. 

Prepare the Marinade  

In a bowl make a paste with ground spices adding the brown butter  -smen, garlic, ginger and honey .

Apply the marinade liberally to the chicken pieces and leave to marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes and up to 24 hours.

In a skillet heat more smen brown butter, and a little olive oil. Fry the chicken pieces; (try to keep the marinade in the bowl until later as it burns easily). 

Add the left over marinade, plus a bay leaf and the finely chopped herbs, The chicken broth, fried onion, the preserved lemon and the fresh green olives. Cover and cook for 30 minutes until cooked through. Transfer to the tagine ready to reheat and serve. 

Sprinkle with additional coriander and parsley. 

Tips

You can cook the chicken in the Tagine in your oven covered for the last 30 to 45 minutes on a 350F/180C oven instead of the stove top after it has been browned. 

Saffron is generally crushed and placed in a little warm water to blossom before adding. Alternatively you can dry roast it - be extra careful as it will burn easily.

While its wonderful to be generous, excessive saffron can bring a bitterness to the food. Store saffron in the refrigerator. 

Smen is a very important part of the flavour. Preparing smen; melt a stick of butter over the stove on a low simmer for 30 minutes. The butter will separate and there will be brown residue. Pour into a glass bowl or measuring cup and use as needed.  This will keep well in the refrigerator. Use the remainder in your soups, rice and other cooked foods.

Lemon pickle is available in larger supermarkets in the deli section. It can be a whole lemon or just pieces. If you wish to make it yourself it is best to pick the smallest lemons available. For best results buy the lemon with thin skin. Add 1 tsp of salt to the bottle, tightly seal and leave it to cook in the sun. Shake it daily. This will take a week. Refrigerate and use as needed. If you do not have access to it, used the zest of a lemon for flavour.

From Niloufer's Kitchen: Moroccan Cuisine

Saffron Rice

Saffron Rice

Fragrant and delicious, saffron rice is a great way to pair with subtle and fresh curries and stews. Perfect with almond-based curries, coconut curries, and vegetable stews. If desired, add it as a layer to your ribbon rice. Saffron rice makes a wonderful aromatic Kheema/Mince Palau. Serve with prawn Tarapori patiyo and dahi ni kudhee. The choice is yours.

Saffron rice with a sliver of lemon and cardamom pods

Serves 6 

3 tbsp oil and butter
2 sticks of cinnamon bark
6 green cardamom pods
1/2 tsp sugar
2 cups rice
1 1/2 tsp salt
freshly grated zest of  a lemon 
3 1/2 cup water

1/4 teaspoon crushed saffron threads in 1/2 cup warm water to blossom

In a pan, melt the butter with the oil until just heated. Add the cinnamon sticks, cardamom pods, and sugar to sauté for a minute, until fragrant. 
Wash and add the rice, salt, and lemon zest, and finally the water. Allow it to come to a boil and then add the warm water infused with saffron. Give it a minute to come to a boil again and cook until you can see the top of the rice. Cover with a lid to seal, lower the heat, and cook for 20 minutes until cooked through and it's tender and flaky. 

Tips

Not all rice is washed nor in need of soaking. 
I use Basmati rice, but any rice will work well. I wash and rinse the rice at least 10 times, or until the water runs clear, and do not soak it. 
The spices in this ingredient list are fragrant and yet very subtle. Add or substitute your favourite ones. Perhaps add a Kaffir lime leaf or two when serving this with a Thai curry, while adding a curry leaf or two when serving it with an Indian curry. 
Lemon grass, fresh mint, and fresh dill are all some suggestions.

My published cookbooks are available for sale through myself and on Amazon.

The World of Parsi Cooking: Food Across Borders is a 3 award winning book. It has been self published in July 2019 and will be going into its second print in 2022. 

The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine was published in 2016 by Austin Macauley and continues to be available through amazon book depot book depository and from the publishers.

Photo courtesy Niloufer Mavalvala

Shirini Panir

Shirini Panir | Sweet Cottage Cheese

This dessert was specially created for the Fezana Journal to mark the Persian festivity of Yalda. The Persians celebrate the winter solstice on the 20th of December each year. An age-old custom where families gather around the fireplace to sing songs, recite prayers, and celebrate with a feast. It was one way of spending the darkest and longest night of the year with happiness, sharing, and caring.

Fresh figs and nectarines over the scrumptious saffron and cheese.

         Fresh tangerines, mandarins, blood oranges and kiwi

Serves 6

500 g/ 1.1 lb panir-farmers' cottage cheese or ricotta recipe on page xxxx
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp crushed saffron threads
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 cup ground almond
1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup chopped or slivered pistachios

Fresh fruit selection: one peach, one nectarine, and six figs

 

Combine in a food processor and whizz everything together. You can use your arm and a large metal spoon instead.  Panir, along with sugar, saffron, lemon juice, almonds, and salt. They should be placed in a bowl and set aside for a couple of hours. As the saffron begins to bloom, continue to combine until the dessert is evenly coloured. 

Once it is done, place it in a flatter serving dish and top with sliced fresh fruit of your choice. Serve topped with pistachios.

Tips

It is best to start with warm panir. If it is chilled from the fridge, bring it to room temperature. This will help in the smoothness of the dessert. 

If you don't want to wait for the saffron to bloom, you can prepare it in the following way. 

On a low flame, dry heat the saffron. It can burn very easily. Remove it from the heat and set it aside for a minute to dry. Using the back of a spoon, crush it. Add 2 tbsp of water and bring it to a boil. Now add the whole thing with the water into the running food processor, and the warm saffron will infuse and combine faster.

For more recipes click on
Niloufer's Kitchen : Persian Fusion


To read about an ancient cuisine you can purchase my cookbooks called The World of Parsi Cooking; Food Across Borders and The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine.  

Paella

Paella

Paella is a staple of the Spanish world and like every other dish has many variations. 

Legend has it that it was in the coastal beaches of  Valencia on the south-east tip of Spain that this dish originated and so is commonly referred to as Paella Valencia. It is the signature dish of this beautiful region of Spain. With a base of olive oil and white bomba rice, this paella is flavoured with Spanish Saffron lots of vegetables of your own choice like peppers, beans, peas and herbs, and has meats like pancetta, salami, rabbit and chicken. Seafood including shellfish, escargot, clams and mussels are often included. Modern day additions are onions and calamari as well as fish and scallop. I like to flavour my paella with hot paprika and lemon to complete the flavours. The bottom of the pot has crispy bits - the socarrat that one scrapes up to relish. If the Spanish bomba is not available Italian arbario will work well. 
It is such a fun dish to create as you can add what you love and omit any flavours that do not titillate your palate. Made in a quantity, it is best served for a family meal and large get togethers. Throwing a Paella party or cooking together as a group can make it an exciting event. Enjoy it with a glass of chilled Sangria. It can be an unforgettable experience for all ages!

My Seafood, Charizo and Pancetta Paella

Serves 15 

340 gms diced pancetta
Olive oil
1 very large onion
1 kg skinless bonelss chicken thighs cut into large chunks
1 tsp cumin powder
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
3 tbsp hot paprika
8 cloves of  finely chopped garlic 
1 cup peppadew peppers
1 cup parsley
150 gms thinly sliced small hot salami
1.3 kg arbario rice
1 tsp saffron threads
75 gms tomato paste
2.25 litres good chicken broth (9cups)
2 roasted red peppers
600 gms shelled prawns, washed and salted
340 gms unshelled prawns, washed and salted
1 cup peas
1/4 th cup fresh lemon juice



Creating the base
In a 15 inch paellera or flat large skillet pan heat and saute 340gms diced pancetta until golden. Add  6 tbsp olive oil. 
Add 1 very large onion which has been finely diced  ( adding a pinch of sugar helps to caramalise it faster). Sauté till soft. 
Add 1 kg boneless, skinless pieces of chicken thigh and  continue to cook until it has cooked through.
Lower the flame. Sprinkle 1 tsp cumin, 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano and 3 tbsp of hot paprika all over, 

Add 6 to 8 garlic cloves – very finely chopped. Be careful it does not burn as it cooks very quickly. Keep cooking and stirring.
Add 1 cup of small pickled peppers cut in 4(peppadew)
1 cup of finely chopped parsley.
Add 150 gms of hot salami rings of choice

Now add 1.3 kg rice and give it a good stir, until all the rice has been coated with the oils in the pan. 

In a measuring cup mix 1 tsp saffron threads that have been crushed, 3 tbsp tomato puree and 1 litre of chicken broth. Add and mix well.

Keep adding more stock as the liquid evaporates and allow to flip the rice over every few minutes. You will need an additional 1.25 litres or 5 cups to complete the cooking. Taste the rice for doneness. 
In the last 5 minutes add 600 gm of shelled prawns that have been washed and lightly salted mix it into the rice. Also add 2 finely sliced roasted red peppers at this time.

To top and decorate the paella add 350 gm of unshelled large prawns also washed and salted and 1 cup of peas. Sprinkle with parsley. Squeeze the juice of one large lemon or 1/4th cup all over. Cover and steam for 5 m to 7 minutes. Serve immediately.

Tips:

If you prefer a milder flavour use mild paprika and salami instead of hot. 

Prepare everything ahead of time. 

Create the base and keep aside until ready to serve and eat. 
Heat the base and then add the rice and remaining ingredients. This will take about 30 minutes to cook through.

Store bought chicken stock is already salted. However if the chicken stock is salt less, the rice will be tasteless. Add salt to the rice accordingly. 
Saffron is best stored in the fridge. It becomes crisp and you can crush it easily with the back of a teaspoon without having to dry roast it.

Most Paelleras do not have lids as traditionally Paella is never covered and mostly cooked on large open fires in the outdoors. Use pieces of foil to cover and steam or place the paellera in a hot oven for 5 minutes to cook the large prawns on top.  

Seafood like crab legs that are cracked, lobster tails in pieces or even  fresh calamari in rings can be added instead of the prawns if you wish. Buy the fresh seafood, wash and salt it for best results. 



For more recipes from my collection click for my e-cookbook available now.
Niloufer's Kitchen: Spanish Tapas
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GP0CSBI
Niloufer's Kitchen:Moroccan
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00G2US0EK
Niloufer's Kitchen:Winter