Couscous Tfaya With Chicken And Majhoul Dates Food

MOROCCAN CHICKEN COUSCOUS WITH DATES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/ gas 4. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large frying pan over a high heat. Season the chicken, then cook for 10 mins or until browned on both sides. Remove and put in a large baking dish with the dry couscous.
• Heat the remaining oil in the pan, add the onions and garlic, and cook for 5 mins until softened. Add the zest and juice of 1 lemon along with the stock, cumin, cinnamon and dates, then bring to the boil.
• Pour the date mixture over the chicken and couscous, sprinkle over the almonds, cover with foil and bake for 20 mins. Serve sprinkled with the remaining zest and parsley.

CHICKEN AND DATE PASTILLA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
• Coat a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and ginger and cook 3 minutes, or until soft. Add cumin, coriander, cinnamon, salt, and black pepper and cook 1 minute, until spices are fragrant. Add chicken, olives and dates and cook 1 minute to heat through. Remove from heat.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and broth. Add to chicken mixture.
• Arrange 1 sheet of phyllo in the bottom of pie plate, allowing dough to hang over the edges. Spray with cooking spray and then top with another sheet of phyllo dough. Top with 1/3 of chicken mixture. Fold overhanging dough over chicken filling. Continue layering, using all sheets, 2 at a time, ending with phyllo dough, fold top sheets over, to cover the filling so nothing is hanging over the sides. Spray the surface with cooking spray and top with almonds. Bake 15 minutes, until golden brown. Sift confectioners' sugar over top just before serving.
• Note: Keep phyllo sheets moist in between use so they do not dry out. Cover them with a damp towel or cloth.

SPATCHCOCKED BIRDS

Steps:

• Set each bird in their respective marinade in a dish into which they fit snugly, cover with plastic wrap and leave in the refrigerator, preferably overnight or for 24 hours, though even a couple of hours would have an effect.
• When the grill is good and hot, lift the birds out of their marinade and cook until the flesh has lost all raw pinkness but is still tender within and the skin is crisp and burnished and blistered. It's hard to be precise about times, since grills differ even more than ovens do, but on my grill - a gas-fired Outdoor Chef, which I love to distraction and, since it has a lid, I use even in the winter rain - the chicken takes about 35 minutes, the Cornish hens 15 and the quail about 7.
• Along with sea salt, sprinkle freshly chopped parsley over the chicken and cilantro over the hens and quail, or use whatever herb seems right for the marinades you've concocted.

COUSCOUS WITH DRIED DATES

Steps:

• Bring the water, stock, and oil to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the dates followed by the couscous. Cover the pan tightly with a lid, remove from the heat, and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve.

MOJITO CHICKEN AND ROASTED ASPARAGUS WITH ALMONDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
• Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
• Arrange asparagus on baking sheet and spray with cooking spray. Season with salt and black pepper. Roast 10 minutes. Top the asparagus with almonds and roast 5 more minutes, until fork-tender and almonds are golden brown. Remove from the oven and set aside.
• Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, garlic and sugar and cook 3 minutes, until soft stirring with wooden spoon. Add chicken and saute 3 to 5 minutes, until golden brown on all sides. Add lime juice and carefully, off the heat, add the rum. Return to the heat and add lime zest, salt, pepper and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 3 minutes, until chicken is cooked through, about 12 to 15 minutes. Serve chicken, garnished with mint, over couscous with the almond topped asparagus on the side.

YVONNE MAFFEI'S ROAST CHICKEN WITH COUSCOUS, DATES AND BUTTERED ALMONDS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a large ovenproof dish or pot with a tight lid, combine 2 tablespoons olive oil, the lemon juice, the ginger, the pepper and 1 teaspoon salt. Add the chicken and rub it around in the mixture until evenly coated. Turn chicken breast side down and roast, uncovered, for 50 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine couscous, 2 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Set aside for 5 to 15 minutes to soak.
• In a small skillet, melt the butter. Add almonds and cook, stirring constantly, just until toasted and golden; adjust heat so almonds and butter do not scorch. Turn off heat and stir in dates.
• Add almond-date mixture to couscous, along with any butter left in pan, and mix, fluffing the grains with a fork. Mix in 2 tablespoons olive oil, the sugar, the cinnamon and the orange blossom water (if using).
• Drizzle or paint honey over top of chicken (leave chicken breast-side down in pot). Add couscous mixture to the pot, arranging it around the chicken. Cover tightly with a lid or foil and return to the oven for 30 minutes more.
• Remove from the oven. When cool enough to handle, remove chicken and carve into serving pieces. Stir and fluff couscous, scraping up any chicken skin stuck to bottom of pan, and place chicken pieces back on top of couscous. Sprinkle with chopped herbs and serve immediately.

TFAYA BAKED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Soak the raisins in hot water for 5 minutes or until softened; drain and transfer to a deep roasting pan.
• Make the marinade: Transfer the stock, olive oil, honey, garlic, turmeric, ginger, salt, black pepper and cinnamon to a large bowl; mix until smooth and well combined.
• Add the onions to the roasting pan and pour approximately half of the marinade over the onions and raisins. Use your hands or tongs to combine.
• Transfer the chicken legs to the large bowl with the remaining marinade and use your hands or tongs to make sure that the chicken is thoroughly coated. Place the chicken legs on top of the onion mixture, skin-side up, and pour any remaining marinade over the chicken.
• Bake in the oven for 35 minutes. Remove the roasting pan from the oven and scatter the almonds on top. Return to the oven for another 10 to 15 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and golden and the almonds are nicely toasted. Serve immediately, with a side of couscous or bread.