Turn the chicken skin side up, pat it dry with paper towels (very important!), and brush it all over with the rest of the oil and herb mixture. Place the chicken, skin side down, on top of the onion and brush with about half the oil and herb mixture. Pour the olive oil into a small glass measuring cup, stir in the herb mixture, and set aside.ĭistribute the lemon slices in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet and distribute the onion and garlic on top. In a small bowl, toss together the spring onion, cilantro and remaining 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and spoon this all over.Place the thyme, fennel seeds, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper in a mini food processor and process until ground.
Bring to a boil, then cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, until reduced by about a third. Make the sauce: Add the 3 tablespoons preserved lemon paste, the stock, butter, garlic, sugar, turmeric and half the cumin to a medium saucepan, then place it over medium-high heat.(You should have about 1/4 cup.) Set aside 3 tablespoons for the sauce, then store the rest in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 weeks. Set aside to cool slightly, then transfer everything to a small food processor and blitz until you have a smooth, spreadable paste. Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat to medium-low, cover and cook for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the rinds start to look translucent and the juice has reduced by about half. Meanwhile make the preserved lemon paste: Add all the ingredients to a small, lidded saucepan set over medium-high heat.Stir everything together gently to coat, and refrigerate to marinate for at least an hour (or overnight if you’re getting ahead). Transfer to the egg white bowl and continue with the remaining. Working one breast at a time, place the chicken between 2 pieces of parchment paper and use a meat mallet (or the bottom of a pan) to pound the chicken evenly so it’s a scant 1/2-inch/1-centimeter thick. Prepare the chicken: In a large bowl, whisk together the egg whites, soy sauce, cornstarch (cornflour), 1/2 teaspoon salt and a good grind of pepper just until there aren’t any lumps, about 30 seconds.Teaspoons cumin seeds, toasted and roughly crushed in a mortar and pestle Tablespoon superfine sugar (caster sugar), or granulated sugar Large unwaxed (or well-scrubbed) lemon (about 4 ounces/150 grams), ends trimmed and discarded, then cut into 1/4-inch / 1/2-centimeter-thick rounds, seeds (pips) removedĬup/60 milliliters lemon juice (from 2 lemons) Tablespoons lemon juice (from 1 to 2 lemons) Tablespoon (about 5 grams) roughly chopped cilantro (coriander) leaves Spring onion, trimmed and finely sliced at an angle Medium egg whites (About 2 ounces/60 grams) (save the yolks for another use)Ĭup/80 milliliters neutral oil, such as sunflower oil