Pomegranate Marinade Food

POMEGRANATE MARINADE

Steps:

• Using a mortar and pestle, crush garlic, black pepper, and Aleppo chile pepper; add bay leaves and thyme. Crush to release oils. Transfer to a nonreactive bowl; whisk in molasses, vinegar, and olive oil.

POMEGRANATE JUICE MARINADE OR SALAD DRESSING -

Steps:

• Add the pomegranate juice to a small nonstick saucepan and bring to a boil. Keep it at a gentle boil and let the juice reduce down to around 1/3 cup. Let the juice cool for about 30 minutes.
• Add remaining marinade ingredients to the saucepan with the pomegranate juice and whisk until blended.
• Add your meat and all of the marinade to a sealable gallon plastic bag. Place bag in a bowl or dish and refrigerate for up to 24 hours, shaking the bag occasionally to make sure all surfaces of the meat are in contact with the marinade.
• Remove meat from the marinade (discarding the leftover marinade) and grill or broil as desired. Use it for chicken, beef, pork and fish or also as a salad dressing.
• Nutritional Information Per 1 tablespoon marinade: 30 calories, 0.1 g protein, 5 g carbohydrate, 1.4 g fat, 0.2 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 0 g fiber, 1 mg sodium. Calories from fat: 39%. © 2006 Elaine Magee.

POMEGRANATE-MARINATED CHICKEN

Steps:

• To marinate chicken: Stir together pomegranate molasses, olive oil, lemon zest, salt and pepper.
• Remove skin and trim bones from the side of each breast.
• Place chicken in a glass baking dish.
• Pour marinade over chicken, cover and refrigerate overnight, turning once.
• To prepare pomegranate dressing: Combine garlic, salt, pepper, lemon juice, honey and pomegranate molasses in a bowl, whisking well.
• Whisk in olive oil slowly, blending well.
• Stir in mint.
• Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Heat a 10-to-12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
• Remove the chicken from the marinade.
• When the pan is hot, place chicken skin-side down and brown well.
• Transfer to a rack set in a roasting pan.
• Spoon a little marinade over the top and roast about 35 to 40 minutes, or until chicken tests done in the thickest part.
• (Discard unused marinade.) Transfer chicken to plates and Drizzle with pomegranate dressing and serve.

ROASTED QUAIL DATE AND POMEGRANATE MARINADE

Steps:

• Remove the backbones from the quail or ask your butcher to do this for you. Rinse and dry them on paper towels. Place in a shallow pan. Mix remaining ingredients, except pomegranate seeds and parsley, in a large bowl. Pour mixture over the quail and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
• Drain the quail and keep the marinade. Place the quail in a roasting pan with some olive oil and roast them for 15 minutes or until done. Meanwhile, strain the marinade into a pot and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat and cook until syrupy. You may wish to add 1 teaspoon of butter or olive oil. Mix well. Taste the marinade and season, to taste.
• Pour the sauce onto 4 plates and place the roasted quail on top. Garnish with pomegranate seeds and parsley.

POMEGRANATE GLAZED LAMB LOLLIPOPS WITH FETA TZATZIKI

Steps:

• Whisk the pomegranate juice and cornstarch in a small saucepan. Add the sugar, honey and mustard and whisk to combine. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Simmer until thickened to the consistency of barbecue sauce, 6 to 8 minutes. Season to taste. Let cool for 30 minutes. The glaze can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
• Place the lamb chops in a large zipper-top bag. Pour half of the glaze into the bag and let the lamb marinate at room temperature for 1 hour. Reserve the remaining glaze to coat the lamb chops on the grill.
• Preheat a grill or grill pan over medium-high heat and liberally oil the grates.
• Take the chops out of the bag and place them on a paper towel-lined tray or plate to wipe off any excess marinade to ensure a nice crust. Season the chops with salt and pepper on both sides. Place the chops on the grill until charred in spots, 3 to 4 minutes. Flip, baste liberally with the glaze and grill for another 3 or 4 minutes or until the internal temperature hits 135 degrees F on a meat thermometer.
• Baste the chops with the glaze again, then remove them from the grill. Coat one side in the chopped pistachios for an added crunch. Serve with a nice schmear of the feta tzatziki and garnish with some fresh mint.
• Grate the cucumber on the large holes of a box grater and place in a fine-mesh strainer or piece of cheesecloth fitted over a bowl. Salt the cucumber and let sit for 10 minutes. Then squeeze out any excess moisture. Put the strained cucumber into a bowl. Add the yogurt, feta, lemon juice, mint, honey and garlic. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

POMEGRANATE-MARINATED LAMB WITH SPICES AND COUSCOUS

Steps:

• Whisk pomegranate molasses, coarsely chopped garlic, olive oil, ground ginger, cinnamon, 1 3/4 teaspoons cumin, paprika, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in large bowl. Add lamb and toss to coat. Cover and marinate 2 hours at room temperature, or up to 2 days in the refrigerator. Drain, reserving marinade. Pat lamb dry.
• Heat heavy large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add meat and bones, if using, and cook until browned, turning occasionally, about 2 minutes total per batch. Return all lamb and bones to skillet. Add reserved marinade and 1/4 cup water. Cover with lid slightly ajar and simmer over medium-low heat until meat is tender, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Meanwhile, bring remaining 1 cup water and chicken broth to boil in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add couscous and remaining 1/4 teaspoon cumin. Remove saucepan from heat and let stand covered 5 minutes. Fluff couscous with fork, then stir in butter until melted. Divide couscous among plates and top with lamb, pomegranate seeds, and basil leaves, spooning remaining sauce over lamb.
• A thick pomegranate syrup; available at some supermarkets, at Middle Eastern markets, and from adrianascaravan.com.

POMEGRANATE MARINATED PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• Whisk olive oil, vinegar, rosemary, garlic, and black pepper together in a large glass or ceramic bowl. Add the pork chops and toss to evenly coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator for 8 hours or overnight.
• Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat and lightly oil the grate.
• Remove pork chops from marinade, discard marinade, and season pork chops with salt.
• Cook the pork chops on the preheated grill until no longer pink in the center, 7 to 10 minutes per side. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read 145 degrees F (63 degrees C). Let chops rest for 3 to 5 minutes before serving.

LAMB KEBABS IN POMEGRANATE-WALNUT MARINADE

Steps:

• Place the meat in a large casserole dish. In a food processor, grind the walnuts, pomegranate molasses, garlic, and oil into a puree. Add the parsley leaves and pulse into small bits. Pour the marinade over the meat and toss well. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• If using wooden or bamboo skewers, soak them in salty water for a couple of hours before grilling. Thread 3 or 4 pieces of meat onto each skewer 1/4-inch apart, leaving 2 inches of space at the end. Discard the marinade. Brush or wipe extra marinade from the skewers. Allow the meat to come to room temperature (no more than 45 minutes total).
• Meanwhile, heat the grill to high heat. Lightly oil the grill and grill the kebabs for 6 to 8 minutes, turning occasionally, until the meat is slightly charred on the outside and very pink on the inside.
• Transfer to a serving platter and season with salt and pepper. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve.

POMEGRANATE LAMB MARINADE

Steps:

• Mix olive oil, pomegranate syrup, vinegar, mustard, salt, pepper, garlic, and rosemary together in a bowl until well combined.