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Jerusalem night no.2. Saffron chicken and herb salad


The second dish on the menu for our Jerusalem night was this rather unusual Saffron chicken salad.
It tastes better than it looks in this picture!
The marinade is what makes it interesting, it also features fennel which I love.

Serves 6

ingredients

2 1/2 tbsp / 50 g honey
1/2 tsp saffron threads
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
about 300 ml water
1 kg skinless, boneless chicken breast
4 tbsp olive oil
2 small fennel bulbs, thinly sliced
15 g picked cilantro leaves
15 g picked basil leaves, torn
15 picked mint leaves, torn
2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 clove garlic
crushed salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 red chilli, deseeded and thinly sliced
1 orange
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400°F / 200°C. Trim and discard 3/8 inch / 1 cm off the top and tail of the orange and cut it into 12 wedges, keeping the skin on. Remove any seeds.
Place the wedges in a small saucepan with the honey, saffron, vinegar, and just enough water to cover the orange wedges. Bring to a boil and simmer gently for about an hour. At the end you should be left with soft orange and about 3 tablespoons of thick syrup; add water during the cooking if the liquid gets very low. Use a food processor to blitz the orange and syrup into a smooth, runny paste; again, add a little water if needed.
Mix the chicken breast with half the olive oil and plenty of salt and pepper and place on a very hot ridged griddle pan. Sear for about 2 minutes on each side to get clear char marks all over. Transfer to a roasting pan and place in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until just cooked.
Once the chicken is cool enough to handle but still warm, tear it with your hands into rough, quite large pieces. Place in a large mixing bowl, pour over half the orange paste, and stir well. (The other half you can keep in the fridge for a few days. It would make a good addition to an herb salsa to serve with oily fish such as mackerel or salmon.) Add the remaining ingredients to the salad, including the rest of the olive oil, and toss gently. Taste, add salt and pepper, and, if needed, more olive oil and lemon juice.

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