Seasonal Ontario Food

I served this with bread and salad, which I think is fairly traditional, but less than ideal for me. Next time I will keep it simpler and healthier, and skip the bread - there's plenty right in the chicken - and eat it wrapped in whole lettuce leaves. We all really liked this, and it's simple and delicious enough that I intend to make it quite often this summer. You could make this at any time of the year, but as a cold salad I think it is perfect summer food.

 

It's Turkish, of course, although we did not happen to encounter it while we were there. The use of breadcrumbs as a "sauce" is quite unusual, but it's a great way to use up stale bread. I've seen a few recipes with yogurt instead of the breadcrumbs, but I think that changes it to something more pedestrian. However, if it comes out a bit thick I would not hesitate to loosen it with a spoonful of yogurt if I was short on the chicken stock. 

You can add some vegetables to it if you like, but any recipe I saw with other vegetables in it was not written in Turkish by Turkish cooks; take that for what it is worth. The number of portions assumes bread and salad at the lower end, and that it is part of a mezze spread with multiple dishes available, at the upper end.

 

4 to 12 servings

45 minutes prep time 

BUT it should be made somewhat in advance to cool and rest

 

  

450 grams (1 pound) skinless, boneless chicken pieces

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 bay leaf

1 small carrot (optional)

1 small onion (optional)

1 small stalk celery (optional)

2 cups water

 

Put the chicken pieces into a pot with the salt and a bay leaf, and whichever of the seasoning vegetables you can round up. Cover with about 2 cups water and bring up to a simmer; simmer gently until cooked, about 20 to 30 minutes. Let cool. 

 

Strain the stock, discarding the solids - other than the chicken - and keep it and the chicken cool in the fridge until ready to proceed. 

2 or 3 cloves of garlic 

1/2 teaspoon cumin seed, ground

1/2 teaspoon coriander seed, ground

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper

salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 cup chicken broth, PLUS some more

1 cup fine dry bread crumbs

1 cup crushed walnuts

walnut pieces

parsley

 

Peel and grate the garlic; keep it in 2 piles, one a little larger than the other. 

 

Grind the cumin and coriander seeds, and put them in a little bowl with the remaining spices. 

 

Be sure the bread crumbs and walnuts are prepared before you start assembly; the bread should be in bits the size of a pea or smaller (you can grind them in a food processor if you like). The walnuts can likewise be almost milled fine, or left in little chunks depending on the texture you prefer. 

Shred the chicken into fine pieces.

 

Heat 1 cup of the chicken stock with about 2/3 of the garlic. When it comes to a boil, add the bread crumbs and the bowl of spices and mix well. When it is a solid mass, remove it from the heat. Stir in the crushed walnuts, and the remaining (raw) garlic. You should have a smooth, soft, and pliable but not liquid paste. If it is too thick, thin it with a little more chicken stock (or yogurt). It will thicken a bit with sitting so that's something to keep in mind. Mix in the shredded chicken.

Spread or mound the chicken in a serving dish, and garnish it with larger walnut pieces and chopped parsley to taste. Drizzle it with the Chile Oil. Serve at room temperature, but keep it refrigerated if you are not serving it right away - just take it out about 10 or 15 minutes before serving to take the chill off. Don't put on the Chile Oil until you are about to serve it.

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper

1 teaspoon paprika

a pinch of salt

Put the oil into a very small pan and heat it until it shimmers and smells of olives, and generally is quite hot but not boiling. Turn off the heat and add the spices. Mix them in well - they will probably sizzle a bit - and let the oil sit for about 10 minutes before drizzling it over the chicken.

Last year at this time I made Smoked Trout, Asparagus & Chick Pea Salad.