Three recipes from the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen's new cookbook Extra Good Things (2024)

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From a blackened chicken to a parmigiana pie to turmeric fried eggs, try these recipes from Noor Murad and Yotam Ottolenghi's new cookbook Extra Good Things from the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen.

Blackened chicken with caramel and clementine dressing

Don't be afraid to really char your chicken thighs here (making sure to ventilate your kitchen well!) – this'll add an intense flavour alongside the vibrant dressing and make for a very punchy eating experience. That said, you can also grill your chicken thighs in the oven, or swap them out for chicken breasts, if you prefer. Use a pair of kitchen scissors to help you easily remove the bones from the thighs, or ask your butcher to do this for you, making sure to keep the skins intact. Feel free to swap out the clementines for orange segments in the dressing; it'll work just as well.

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INGREDIENTS

• 6 large chicken thighs (1kg), boneless and skin on (850g)
• 1½ tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp chilli flakes
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 12 spring onions, trimmed, washed well and dried (180g)
• salt

Caramel and clementine dressing

• 85g caster sugar
• 30g fresh ginger, peeled and julienned
• 2 red chillies, deseeded, halved widthways and julienned (20g)
• 3 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 3-4 limes: 1 halved, to serve, and the rest juiced to get 3 tbsp
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 2-3 clementines (200g), peeled (140g)
• 5g fresh coriander, roughly
• chopped, to serve

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METHOD

1. Put the chicken thighs, turmeric, chilli flakes, fish sauce, oil and 1 teaspoon of salt into a large bowl and mix well to combine. Leave to marinate for an hour, or cover and refrigerate for longer (up to overnight). If the latter, remove the chicken thighs from the fridge about 45 minutes before cooking.
2. Place a large cast-iron saute pan on a medium-high heat and ventilate your kitchen well. Once hot, add half the chicken thighs, skin side down. Weigh down the thighs with a large saucepan around the same size, so they are well pressed into the pan. Cook for 6-8 minutes, or until the skin is charred and blackened. Remove the top pan and set the chicken thighs aside, then repeat with the remaining thighs. The second batch might blacken faster, so check them at the 5-minute mark. Remove all the chicken, setting it aside, and let the pan cool for 5-10 minutes.
3. If needed, drain off all but 1½ tablespoons of the fat collected in the pan and return to a medium-high heat. Add the spring onions, using a pair of tongs to coat them in the fat, then put back the chicken thighs, skin side up, and any of their juices, nestling them into the spring onions, along with 90ml of water. Cook for 8 minutes, or until the chicken is tender and cooked through. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and leave to rest for 5 minutes before slicing each thigh into 2cm-wide strips.
4. While the chicken is cooking, make the caramel and clementine dressing. Heat a medium saucepan on a medium-high heat. Once hot, turn the heat down to medium and sprinkle in the sugar to coat the base – it should immediately start to melt and colour around the sides. Swirl the pan, without stirring, so that all the sugar melts and turns deeply golden, about 1½-2 minutes. Add the ginger and chillies, and stir continuously for 45 seconds, just to take off the spicy edge. Quickly add the vinegar, lime juice and fish sauce, stirring to combine. Cook for 30 seconds, then remove from the heat. Leave to cool for 10 minutes.
5. Use a small serrated knife to slice the clementines into 1cm-thick rounds, then pull at them gently to halve them (don't worry if they break apart further). Stir these into the cooled sauce.
6. To serve, transfer the spring onions to a large platter and top with the chicken and any pan juices, using a spatula to keep each thigh together. Pour the dressing all over, then sprinkle with the coriander. Lastly, squeeze over the lime halves.

Caramel and clementine dressing

• Keep in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
• Pour this dressing over a roast chicken, pan-seared salmon or tofu.

Serves 4

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See Also

Easy Coconut Malai Burfi, Soft and Fudgy Burfi Recipe, Coconut Barfi – Kannamma Cooks

Turmeric fried eggs with tamarind dressing

These are fried eggs but with a very eccentric wardrobe, thanks to the turmeric and chilli, which make them as good to eat as they are to look at. You can serve this easy, vibrant breakfast as it is, or as part of a brunch spread.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 eschalot, peeled and sliced into thin rounds (60g)
• 2 tsp lime juice
• 3½ tbsp olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 200g baby spinach
• ½ tsp ground turmeric
• 4 large eggs
• 1 green chilli, finely sliced into rounds, seeds and all
• salt

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Tamarind dressing

• 30g tamarind paste
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tsp fish sauce
• 2 tsp light soft brown sugar
• 5g fresh coriander, roughly chopped

METHOD

1. Put the eschalots, lime juice and a pinch of salt into a small bowl and use your fingers to gently massage everything together. Set aside to pickle lightly while you continue with the rest.
2. Make the tamarind dressing by putting all the ingredients into a bowl and whisking to combine and dissolve the sugar. Add between 2-4 teaspoons of water, to loosen the mixture (this will vary according to different makes of tamarind paste).
3. Put 1 tablespoon of oil into a large frypan over a medium-high heat. Once hot, add the garlic and cook for 90 seconds, stirring, until fragrant and lightly coloured, then stir in the spinach and ⅛ teaspoon of salt and cook until wilted, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a serving plate and wipe out the pan.
4. Add the remaining 2½ tablespoons of oil plus the turmeric to the same pan, stirring to combine, and return it to a medium-high heat. Once hot but not smoking, crack in the eggs and quickly sprinkle the whites with the chilli slices. Season the eggs all over with a good pinch of salt and use a spatula to separate the whites so that the eggs are not joined together. Fry for 3-4 minutes, spooning some of the oil over the whites. You want the whites to be crispy around the edges and the yolk to be runny (fry them for longer if you like your eggs more cooked).
5. When ready, use a spatula to transfer the eggs to the plate of spinach, drizzling with any extra turmeric oil in the pan. Top with the pickled eschalots and then drizzle with some of the tamarind dressing, serving any remaining alongside.

Tamarind dressing

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• Make the dressing, minus the coriander, and keep refrigerated for up to 5 days.
• A little goes a long way with this dressing: drizzle on to roasted potatoes with plenty of fresh herbs, or spoon over grilled steak for a tangy addition.

Serves 2

Parmigiana pie with tomato sauce

The much-loved Italian-American "eggplant parm" is the inspiration for this dish with layers of breaded eggplant, tomato sauce and cheese, but with a slightly different take here. If you can't find kataifi pastry for the topping, feel free to use filo instead and thinly slice it into julienne strips using scissors. This pie requires a little bit of love to make, but is well worth the effort for an impressive meatless centrepiece.

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INGREDIENTS

• 1kg eggplants, trimmed and cut lengthways into 1-1½ cm-thick slices (about 4-5 per eggplant)
• 70g plain flour
• 2 large eggs plus 3 large yolks
• 2 tbsp milk or water
• 225g fine dried breadcrumbs
• 105ml olive oil
• 40g kataifi pastry, defrosted and roughly cut into 2-3cm lengths
• 75g pecorino romano (or parmesan), finely grated
• 300g buffalo mozzarella, drained of any water and thinly sliced salt and black pepper

Tomato sauce

• 120ml olive oil
• 2 onions, peeled and finely chopped (180g)
• 8 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 2 tsp Aleppo chilli
• 2½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 1½ tbsp ground cumin
• 2 tins of plum tomatoes (800g), crushed by hand
• 2 tsp caster sugar
• 30g fresh coriander, roughly chopped

METHOD

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1. Preheat the oven to 200C fan-forced (220C conventional). Line two large baking trays with baking paper.
2. Toss the eggplants in a large bowl with ¾ teaspoon of salt and a good grind of pepper.
3. Put the flour into a shallow dish. Put the eggs and yolks into a separate dish with the 2 tablespoons of milk or water and whisk together well. Put the breadcrumbs into a third dish with 1¼ teaspoons of salt, mixing to combine.
4. Working with one slice at a time, coat the eggplant in the flour, shaking off the excess, followed by the egg wash, then the breadcrumbs. Transfer to your lined trays and continue with the rest. Drizzle the slices all over with 2 tablespoons of the oil per tray and bake for 15 minutes. Switch the trays around, then bake for 15 minutes more, or until nicely golden. Remove from the oven and turn the heat down to 180C fan-forced (200C conventional).
5. Meanwhile, make the tomato sauce. Put the oil into a large saucepan over a medium-high heat. Once hot, add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes until softened and lightly coloured. Add the garlic and spices and cook, stirring continuously, for 1 minute more, then add the tinned tomatoes, sugar, 400ml of water, 1¾ teaspoons of salt and a good grind of pepper. Bring to a simmer, then turn the heat down to medium and cook for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thickened slightly. Stir in the coriander, then measure out 700g of sauce (you'll use this to build the pie). Keep the rest in the pan, to warm up when serving.
6. In a bowl, toss together the kataifi, half the pecorino and the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil.
7. Next assemble the pie. Line a 23cm springform cake tin with a piece of baking paper large enough to cover the base and sides. Cover the base with a third of the eggplant slices (cutting them to fit, as needed). Top with a third of the sauce, a third of the mozzarella and a third of the remaining pecorino. Continue in this way with the remaining eggplant, sauce and cheeses. Lastly, top evenly with the kataifi mixture and bake for 35 minutes. Turn the heat up to 200C fan-forced (220C conventional) and bake for 15-20 minutes more, or until nicely golden on top. Remove from the oven and leave to set for about 30 minutes.
8. Remove the outer ring of the tin and use the paper to help you lift the pie on to a board. Heat up the extra sauce and serve the pie warm, or at room temperature, with the extra sauce alongside.

Tomato sauce

• Make up to 3 days ahead and keep refrigerated in a sealed container.
• Use this spiced sauce for pasta bakes and tomato-based stews, or crack in a couple of eggs to make a shakshuka.

Serves 4

This is an edited extract from Extra Good Things from the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen by Noor Murad and Yotam Ottolenghi. Photography by Elena Heatherwick. Ebury Press, RRP $49.99.

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