Poulet Yassa recipe

Ingredients

Serves 4-6

• 1kg chicken legs and thighs, bone in and skin on

• 1st fine sea salt

• 3 tbsp rapeseed, peanut or neutral vegetable oil, plus more for brushing
  
  

For the marinade

• 1  medium brown onion peeled and roughly chopped

• 4 garlic cloves, peeled

• Handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley

• 1sp cayenne pepper

• Zest and juice of 1 lemon 

• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
  

For the sauce

• 3 tsp rapeseed, peanut or vegetable oil

• 3 medium brown onions, peeled, halved and sliced (just under 1cm thick) 

• 1 red Romano or bell pepper, deseeded and sliced (just under 1cm thick

• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and grated

• Juice of 4 limes or 2 lemons, or a combination of both

• 2tbsp Dijon mustard

• 300ml chicken stock

• 6 sprigs of thyme or 1 tsp dried

• 1 bay leaf

• 1 scotch bonnet pepper, pierced and left whole

• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt

• 1.2 freshly ground black pepper

Method

To serve

Honey if needed
Handful of parsley, leaves plucked

1. Cut a few slashes diagonally across the chicken skin, season with the fine sea salt and massage it into the chicken. Place in a wide bowl.

2. Combine the marinade ingredients in a food processor and blend to a smooth paste. Tip the paste onto the chicken, add 2 tablespoons of the oil and massage thoroughly, carefully tucking some of the marinade under the skin and into the slashes. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours, or overnight for a more flavourful marinade and to tenderise tougher poultry.

3. Remove the chicken from the fridge 30 minutes before cooking, to allow it to come up to room temperature. Preheat the grill to medium-high.

4. Drizzle the chicken with the remaining oil. Toss well and arrange in one layer on an oiled grilling tray or rack with thighs skin-side up. Reserve any marinade left in the bowl. Grill each side for 10 minutes, until browned with a nice char on the skin. Set aside to finish cooking in the sauce.

5. Meanwhile, to make the sauce, heat the oil in a wide saucepan and add the onions and any leftover marinade. Sprinkle with a pinch of fine sea salt, cover with a lid and cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring often, until the onions are translucent. Remove the lid and continue cooking uncovered for another 15–20 minutes, until the onions begin to brown and eventually caramelise in their natural sugars. Add a splash of water, if needed, to prevent burning.

6. Add the pepper and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic until fragrant. Pour in the lime or lemon juice and add the Dijon mustard, chicken stock, thyme, bay leaf and scotch bonnet. Season with the sea salt and freshly ground pepper and bring to a simmer.

7. Tuck the chicken, skin-side up, into the sauce. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the sauce is reduced and the chicken is cooked through.

8. Taste to check the seasoning. If you find the sauce too tart, scoop out 2 tablespoons of sauce into a small bowl and add ½ teaspoon of honey, mix well then pour back into your sauce. Gently stir and taste again. Repeat with another ½ teaspoon of honey, if needed.

9. Scatter with parsley and serve with simple sides, such as rice, steamed couscous, fonio or creamy mashed potatoes and green beans.