Chicken Shawarma #Recipe @PegCochran

 

Every once in awhile I crave something spicy or with a unique flavor.  This chicken sharama was delicious and quite easy.  It is a popular street food in the Middle East.  Traditionally, shawarma is made with thin slices of meat stacked 20 inches high on a skewer and then roasted on a vertical spit. Thin slices are carved off the side and eaten in a pita with various toppings. The meat can be chicken, turkey, beef or lamb.  It is usually served with garlic sauce but we opted for tzatziki sauce instead.  Since most of us don't have a vertical spit in the kitchen, this recipe was adapted for the home cook and roasts the chicken in a single layer on a sheet pan in the oven. 

I found a package of pre-mixed shawarma spices in our Asian market, which is what I used.  But if you want to make your own, follow the directions below.  This recipe is from the Mediterranean Dish. I cut the recipe in half for the two of us and there was some leftover for lunch.  Traditionally this would be served in a pita but I chose to have mine over a salad.  Your choice! Either way it was very good.

 

¾ TBSP ground cumin

¾ TBSP ground turmeric

¾ TBSP ground coriander

¾ TBSP garlic powder

¾ TBSP paprika

½ TSP ground cloves

½ TSP cayenne pepper or to taste

 

Salt

8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 large onion thinly sliced

Juice of 1 large lemon

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

 

Mix the shawarma spices cumin through cayenne.   Set aside.

Season chicken thighs with salt on both sides then slice thinly into bite-sized pieces. 

 

 Put chicken in a bowl (or large plastic baggie.)  Add the shawarma spices and mix until chicken is coated.  Add the sliced onions, lemon juice and olive oil and mix again.  Cover and refrigerate for three hours or overnight.

 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Remove chicken from refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for a few minutes. 

Spray baking sheet with cooking spray or brush with oil.  Spread chicken and onions in one layer.  Roast for 30 minutes.  You want the chicken to be slightly crispy.

 

 

Believe it or not, I did get this pan clean again. Soak overnight with water and baking soda--a tip from my grandmother. The chicken may look burned, but it wasn't and the onions were so sweet.

  

Serve in a warmed or toasted pita pocket with tzatziki sauce and diced cucumbers and tomatoes or atop greens.     

 

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Coming October 27! Pre-order now.

The plot thickens for American gothic writer Penelope Parish when a murder near her quaint British bookshop reveals a novel's worth of killer characters.

Penelope Parish has hit a streak of bad luck, including a severe case of writer's block that is threatening her sophomore book. Hoping a writer in residence position at The Open Book bookstore in Upper Chumley-on-Stoke, England, will shake the cobwebs loose, Pen, as she's affectionately known, packs her typewriter and heads across the pond.

Unfortunately, life in Chumley is far from quiet and when the chairwoman of the local Worthington Fest is found dead, fingers are pointed at Charlotte Davenport, an American romance novelist and the future Duchess of Worthington. Charlotte turns to the one person who might be her ally for help: fellow American Pen. Teaming up with bookstore owner Mabel Morris and her new friend Figgy, Pen sets out to learn the truth and find the tricks that will help her finish her novel.

OUT NOW! Book #5

 

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The dead of winter takes on a whole new meaning in the new Cranberry Cove Mystery from USA Today bestselling author Peg Cochran!

On a night of heavy snow and bitter cold, newlyweds Monica and Greg are comfortably nestled before a warm fire when they’re roused by a late-night knock at the door. Surprised to find a troubled and confused woman on the doorstep, Monica is even more shocked when the woman vacantly utters that someone is trying to kill her. Sensing distress but not danger, Monica decides to help this mysterious woman, but her clouded recollections yield little—until she dredges up memories of her sister and a nearby home, where they find the woman’s sister, dead. Unable to deny her own curiosity or the woman’s request for help, Monica begins digging into the suspicious death, only to discover a murky family history of valuable land, a bullying brother, an unscrupulous real estate developer, and endless rumors of good deeds met with bad blood. And when the trail of the killer begins to turn cold, Monica realizes that while the family wants to bury their sister, someone is out to bury the clues—and if Monica’s not careful, to bury her as well . . .
Includes tasty recipes!

 

  

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Moroccan Fish

by Sheila Connolly

For some reason lately I've been craving something I've been calling Moroccan fish.  Why, I don't know.  I don't do a lot of Middle-Eastern cooking, although I do have the classic A Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden (1974), a gift from a friend when I was first married.  But for some reason, none of the fish recipes spoke to me this time.

 

What did I want?  Mostly the spices—a little earthy, a little hot.  I snooped around the Internet a bit and still didn't come up with exactly the right combination.  So once again, I merged a couple to get the results I was looking for. I can call it a mash-up, right? (Although that does sound a bit disgusting, but as in music or writing, it's combining two different sources to create something new.)

 

I am informed that most Moroccan fish recipes call for a marinade called charmoula.  The problem is, there is no one charmoula recipe, so I improvised.  The one I liked best is actually a combination of a dry rub and a marinade (you grind the dry ingredients together, then add moister ones)

 

Chermoula/Marinade:
 



1 tsp coriander seeds
12 black peppercorns


Hey, meet my new spice
grinder!

¼ tsp red pepper flakes
Pinch of saffron
½ tsp coarse salt
1 tsp paprika

 

In a mortar or a grinder, finely grind the dry ingredients.

 

1 medium onion, chopped
1/3 cup parsley leaves, chopped
1 tsp grated lemon rind
2 Tblsp fresh lemon juice

 

Stir these ingredients into the dry ingredients to make a thick paste.

 

The fish:

 

This is a single hake filet, about one pound

Once again, you may use whatever sturdy white fish you can find (hake, haddock and cod work well), either a single filet or several smaller serving-size pieces.  Rinse the fish and pat it dry.  Rub the chermoula on both sides and place the fish in a shallow baking dish that has been coated lightly with olive oil.  Cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours.


The veggies:

 

I'm still working on those lovely fresh local ones from the farmers' market, and I happened to have a lot that were roughly the same diameter—some adorable peppers, and heirloom tomatoes.

1 small onion, thinly sliced

2-3 small tomatoes, thinly sliced
2-3 small peppers, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper

 

Remove the marinated fish from the refrigerator and let come to room temperature.  You will find that it has probably produced some liquid, which is fine.  Scatter your vegetables around the fish (this is why the small ones fit nicely).  As the fish cooks, it will produce more liquid, which will cook the vegetables without letting them dry out.

 

Place the baking dish in a preheated 375 degree oven and bake until the fish flakes easily and the vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes.  Serve with couscous or rice.