Tuesday 28 September 2010

ottolenghi - marinated chicken and char grilled broccoli

I have recently bought the Ottolenghi cookbook - I haven't been to their restaurant in London yet although the recipes and description of their food philosophy in the book means a visit is most definitely on the cards. I bought the book partly because the reviews were good and partly because of the look of the book. Superficial maybe, but if a cookbook looks simple and well designed then often the food is too.

I wanted to try something new but easy and with a health kick to it - and some punchy but clean flavours - so went for the marinated turkey breast with cumin, coriander and white wine served with chargrilled broccoli with chilli and garlic. I love broccoli - it is one of my favourite vegetables - but there aren't a lot of recipes about for it that arean't focused on cheesy or creamy sauces.

For the turkey

A turkey breast or turkey fillets
4 tbsp mint leaves
4 tbsp parsley leaves
4 tbsp coriander leaves
1 garlic clove, peeled
60ml lemon juice
60ml olive oil
125ml white wine
half a tsp ground cumin
half a tsp salt
half a tsp black pepper

This makes enough for 4-6 but I halved the quantities for this occasion. Usually I would make the 4-6 in order to have enough for the next night.

Put everything apart from the turkey into a food processor and whizz it all up to make the marinade
Put the meat into a non-metallic container and pour over the marinade, massaging it into the meat


Cover and leave in the fridge over night
Take the turkey out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature
Place turkey in a roasting tin - reserving the marinade - and roast at 220/G 7 for 15 minutes and then 180/G 4 for 30-45 minutes if using turkey breast. If using fillets roast at 200/G6 for 20-30 mins
Put the marinade in a small pot and heat up, reduce by about half, season to taste
When the turkey is ready let it rest for ten minutes then slice it thinly and serve with the sauce

For the broccoli
1 head of broccoli
55ml olive oil
2 garlic cloves thinly sliced
1 mild red chilli thinly sliced
sea salt and black pepper
toasted flaked almonds [if you have them, I had forgotten about them!]
thin slices of lemon to garnish

Separate broccoli into florets and blanhc the broccoli in boiling hot water for 2 minutes
Plunge into a bowl of ice cold water then drain until completely dry - this stops it cooking and keeps the broccoli nice and crunchy
Toss the broccoli in a bowl with 20ml of the olive oil
Place a ridged griddle - or as I did a frying pan if you don't have a griddle - over a high heat and grill the florets
You might need to do the broccoli in batches - once done put in a heatproof bowl
While grilling the broccoli warm the oil in a small pan with the garlic and chillies


Pour the olive oil mixture over the broccoli and toss well - give it a taste and adjust the seasoning
Garnish with the lemon and almonds if you wish then serve

I also had some bread with this to sook up the lovely juices and sauce.

No comments: