“One person wanted me to trade a Madonna CD for a chicken. But I said no. The Madonna CD was definitely not worth a chicken”
-Theodoris Roussos, a butcher in Athens using bartering in a country beset with financial controls and a shaky banking system
This is a wonderful supper for two…. or a Sunday lunch for two. The yoghurty gravy is filled with the taste of the charred lime. The peppery rocket (or you could substitute watercress) cuts through the rich sauce and the stalwart potatoes giving everything a bit of zing.
You can grill the chicken ahead of time, allow to cool, and make the sauce at that stage, which reduces the risk of it curdling. You can also, of course, cook the potatoes ahead of time and simply reheat.
Lime-glazed chicken with peppery rocket and crushed potatoes
This looks like a lot of ingredients but it doesn’t take long
Serves – 2
Ingredients
- 2 x large chicken breasts with skin on (if you are trying to be very impressive, you can do this with spatchcocked baby chickens (poussin))
- about a fifth of a pack of butter (50g)
- 1 unwaxed lime – the zest and the juice of this. NB you will get more juice out of it if you warm it for 10 seconds in the microwave
- 2 crushed cloves of garlic
- ½ tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp dried thyme, or fresh lemon thyme
- ¼ tsp harissa paste
- 2 tsp runny honey – thyme honey in an ideal world
- 4 tbsps Greek yoghurt
- smoked salt and white pepper
- 120g bag rocket (or rocket salad)
- 2 tbsp cider vinegar
- 5 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp walnut oil
- salt and pepper
- 4 medium potatoes, washed and cut into quarters and eighths to about the same size, don’t bother to peel
- 2 tbsps olive oil
- 50g/2 oz butter
- smoked salt and freshly ground black pepper, or some Urfa pepper flakes
- chopped parsley if you have any
Instructions
- Put half the butter and half the zest in a bowl with the seasoning, garlic, coriander, thyme and harissa.
- Spread the mixture over the skin of the breasts and over the underside and leave to marinate several hours or overnight.
- Mix the rest of the butter and zest with the lime juice and the honey.
- Brush over the breasts.
- Get the grill good and hot, and grill the underside for about ten minutes, then turn over and grill the skin side for another ten minutes.
- MEANWHILE, heat oven to 210°C (or use top right oven if you have an Aga).
- Boil the potatoes for about 15 minutes.
- Now move the chicken into a roasting tin (and NO, do not be tempted to do the whole thing in the oven, the grilling element is essential), not forgetting the juices. BASTE.
- Cook another ten minutes, until juices run clear.
- Make the salad dressing.
- Drain the potatoes, mix in some olive oil, some salt, and some chopped parsley if you have any to hand.
- Leave the chicken to rest, covered with foil, and whisk (using the cappuccino whisk, or a fork) the cooled pan juices into the yoghurt (which you’ve put into a smallish bowl). It is very likely to curdle, in which case just whisk a bit more, or simply don’t worry, it tastes great. After the chicken has rested a bit there will be more juice, whisk that it too.
- Serve the chicken and the crushed potatoes with the sauce poured artistically over, and the rocket salad on the side.
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