Zaatar Marinated Chicken

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Where does this recipe come from?

This is a dish that is very old and traditional in Palestinian cuisine.

Seasoning food with Zaatar is very common in Palestinian cuisine especially in the kitchens of Bethlehem and its nearing villages such as Beit Jala and Beit Sahoor. It is believed to have originated there and moved from there to Jerusalem, where seasoning with zaatar became also very widespread.

The shifting of people from their villages and cities in 1948 and 1967 to eventually settle in Lebanon, Syria and Jordan had carried with them these foods making them popular in their eventual destinations. Ever since then, varieties of Zaatar chicken had become common throughout the Levant, but this remains the traditional recipe as it was first prepared in Bethlehem.

While the original recipe fries the potatoes in one version, and bakes the potatoes raw with the chicken in the second version, I personally season the potatoes with zaatar to pack more of that flavour into them, then roast them separately. I then add them to the finished roasted chicken as I find this to be a more flavoursome option. This way the texture of the potatoes remains crunchy instead of the mushy baked ones, and less drenched with oil as is the case of the fried potatoes. Try it this way and see how you guys are going to really love it.

Zaatar Chicken is a very simple dish packed with flavour. It is one of those concoctions that you can prepare with ease yet please every single one of your family members.

Ingredients

Serves: 4 Cook Time: 1 hour

For Zaatar Marinated Chicken

  • 1 whole organic chicken, washed and rubbed with lemon wedges
  • 1/4 cup DS Premium Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 4 tbsp Reduced sour pomegranate juice or 2 tbsp Pomegranate Molasses
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 3 tbsp DS Organic Dried Zaatar Mix
  • Salt & Black pepper to taste

For Zaatar Flavoured roasted potatoes

  • 4 medium potatoes, washed and cut into wedges
  • 1/4 cup DS Premium Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 tbsp DS Organic Dried Zaatar Mix
  • Salt & Black pepper to taste

 

Mix all the marinade ingredients together then coat the chicken with the mixture, making sure to also rub the inside.

Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 2 hours.

When ready to cook, place the chicken and the marinade in a baking dish and bake covered for 1 hour.

Uncover and roast for 10 minutes to  brown.

DS Organic Dried Zaatar Mix

 

In the meantime, mix together the olive oil, DS Dried Zaatar Mix and seasoning then coat the potato wedges with the mixture.

Place in a single layer over a baking sheet and roast until golden and crisp (45 minutes to 1 hour). This is best done alongside the chicken, this way it all finishes cooking at the same time.

When ready to serve, mix together the potatoes and chicken pieces and serve hot with a side of salad and a variety of pickles.

DS Organic Green Olives In Brine, DS Organic Pickled Turnips, DS Organic Pickled Cauliflower and DS Organic Pickled Cucumber all pair very well with this zaatar marinated chicken.

 

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