Monday 15 June 2015

Sumac Chicken with Bread Salad


I know. You are relieved to see a cooking post today and not a post on my Kuala Terengganu trip hah..hah...hah... But I am only giving you a brief repite because I have more Kuala Terengganu posts coming up so brace yourselves...

This dish came about after I bought a spice from a shopping trip in Kuala Terengganu. I was at Paya Bunga Square when I spotted Sumac...


.... at this little shop..


I got to know about sumac when I read Joyce's post and her beautiful bread salad got me curious. I was not able to find sumac until that day at Paya Bunga Square.


Once I got home, I looked for recipes using sumac. This recipe caught my eye and I earmarked it for lunch on Saturday. I was too lazy to go to the supermarket and I poked around in my freezer. The only thing chicken I had was a packet of wings. It's chicken, so it was all systems go.

For the bread, I used my favorite French Walnut Loaf which I bought from TK Confectionary. I love this bread, I can eat one whole loaf in one sitting. As you can see, half the loaf is missing hee..hee...


The dish turned out really well but chicken wings were not exactly suitable. Since I loved it so much, I made the dish again  the following day. This time with two big chicken legs. The chicken legs were marinated with sumac, garlic, salt and olive oil.

Bread tossed with sauteed onions before roasting with chicken.

The chicken is then placed on top of the bread, which has been cut into cubes and tossed with fried onions, garlic and parsley. Then roast the whole lot at 180C for 40-45 minutes.

Place marinated chicken on top of the bread cubes.
Once the chicken is cooked, it is set aside to rest and the bread is tossed together with cucumber, tomatoes, parsley and lemon juice. This bread salad is served with the roasted chicken. 

The bread which is underneath the chicken is moist and soggy from absorbing the chicken juices while the rest of the bread becomes toasted and crunchy.

This was my first attempt with chicken wings.


It wasn't very well executed because I did not use enough onions and the wings were marinated with only sumac, salt and olive oil (as per the recipe). I felt that it needed garlic. I can't live without garlic and hence I added garlic to the marinade.


The bread salad was really gorgeous. So very delicious! It is salty and tangy and the crunch that comes from the toasted bread adds on to the enjoyment.


Now, about the sumac. I don't know how to describe it. It has a peculiar smell and upon tasting, it comes off as sourish. By itself, it did not make an impression on me. But used as a marinade, it made the chicken very tasty. And still I don't know how to describe it hah..hah...


But no matter. You will just have to taste it yourself. I still have quite a bit of sumac leftover and I will use this opportunity to explore more recipes using sumac.









Sumac Chicken with Bread Salad
Recipe source : Adapted from CHOW

Ingredients :
- 2 chicken legs
- 1 tablespoon sumac
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- salt to taste
- freshly cracked black pepper to taste

- Crusty bread, cut into 1/2" cubes
- 2 big onions, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- Italian parsley, chopped

- Japanese cucumber, cut into cubes
- tomatoes, cut into cubes
- lemon juice to taste

Method :
1. Mix sumac, olive oil, minced garlic, slat and pepper together to make the marinade. Adjust seasoning to taste.
2. Rub marinade all over the chicken and set aside or leave in the fridge to marinate overnight.
3. Heat oil in a pan and saute the sliced onions until soft and slightly browned.
4. Add garlic and parsley and saute for just a short while, about 1 minute. 
5. Add the sauteed onions/garlic to the bread cubes and toss to mix.
6. Place the bread in a single layer on a baking tray and place the chicken legs on top of the bread.
7. Roast at 180C for 40-45 minutes until chicken is fully cooked.
8. Once done, set aside the chicken to rest. 
9. In a mixing bowl, toss cucumber, tomatoes and bread with lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.


36 comments:

  1. Good morning Phong Hong,
    Wow!! The whole chicken leg version look so good! YUM!
    I read a recipe about sumac spice in Weekly Women magazine yesterday,now i saw you cooking with it. I would love to try to cook with sumac too. Your sumac chicken with bread salad sound so so delicious!
    Have a wonderful week ahead :)
    mui

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    Replies
    1. Hi mui mui! I have been very curious about sumac and now my curiosity has been satisfied in a good way!

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  2. Hi Phong Hong,

    You paid RM12 for a bottle of sumac... wow!!! I'm surprised that sumac is quite costly in Malaysia. Like you, I wouldn't know how to describe the taste of sumac too... only know that it made your chicken very yummy :D

    Zoe

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    Replies
    1. Hi Zoe! I expected it to be expensive as most imported goods in Malaysia is costly. It doesn't help that the Ringgit is on a downward trend at the moment.

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  3. Oh, I've never eaten anything with sumac before, so I won't know about the taste but I heard that it's lemony in flavor (and a spice commonly used in Middle Eastern cooking). Since it's sourish (as you described), maybe you can sprinkle some on your salad (replacing lemon juice) and see how it tastes. As for your chicken leg and wings, I think both looks great but the leg is able to achieve a better browning probably because you can cook it longer (as wings tend to brown more quickly).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. When I first took a whiff, it did not impress me at all. But since I already bought it, I had a go and was not disappointed. It's sour but not lemony to me. Yes, I guess I should have sprinkled some on the salad just like Joyce's recipe. Next time!

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  4. What the heck is sumac anyway? It sounds like a Bosnian or Slovenian word or something. It's not made from something inside a semak, is it? XD

    Bring on your Kuala Terengganu posts, I'm ready! Actually since you bought this sumac from KT, it is still a KT related post lah..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hah..hah...semak? It's a Middle Eastern spice made from dried sumac berries. Something exotic which I had been looking for and stumbled upon in KT. Who would have thought? There is quite a number of Middle Eastern spices that I am interested in but I better finish off my sumac first.

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  5. You are a fantastic and wonderful chef! I always kena hypnotized by your food posts as I would read line by line and got instant drooling & tummy growls. This dish is so unique and delicious looking to impress me. This sumac is a new thing again yet you knew it by hard like the back of your hands & wok. LOL

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    1. Aiyo, TM! You really know how to splash compliments that make me so happy :) I just follow the recipe lah and as you can see, this is an easy one.

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  6. Never heard of sumac before, he he...but I know I like your Sumac Chicken with Bread Salad..looks so yummy and delicious!

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    1. Nancy, I was more blown away by the salad hah..hah...maybe because of the toasty, crunch bread. But the chicken was good too, very exotic taste.

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  7. Sumac spice? Never heard! Sure would love to try. Dijamin sampai hari esok? Wink! Wink!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hah..hah...aiyah, I should have bought an extra bottle!

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  8. I wish i can cook as well as you... What i cook always turn out horrible...

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    Replies
    1. Sharon, don't bluff lah hee..hee..you can cook well too :)

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    2. Ha ha.... Sharon is so humble and honest as she has shown us some laughable food disasters.

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  9. Hi Phong Hong,
    Hmmm ... I gotta check it out on that Sumac ...
    Love that plate of chicken wings + toasted bread salad ... so yummy-licious!

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    Replies
    1. Karen, I think you will like the chicken and especially the salad.

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  10. I looked up sumac online and it says a tangy crimson spice made from fruits of sumac plants found in Africa and North America. I think I will like its taste since it is tangy.

    As usual, your cooking is superb and I am sure the chicken legs are very flavourful and tasty. Eating garlic does wonder for health so good that you like to eat garlic (not to mention it keeps vampires away).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hah..hah..I am scared of vampires! The chicken tasted a lot better once garlic was added. I muct have garlic in my seasonings and also most salad dressings.

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  11. you sure know your readers well.. and yes, i was actually expecting a continuation from your KT trip but then suddenly i saw this ayam thing!! and i thought you have been MIA for a week and why did you just blogged only 3 days for the KT trip? so, giving us a respite?? hahaha, don't say that, probably just a break in between for us to look forward to more interesting post lah~~ :)

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    1. Don't worry, SK. There will be more KT posts to come!

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  12. i have to go google sumac and see what this thing is, haha.. okay, after some reading, i have no idea but will just regard it as some spices, some spices that you used in this sumac chicken which looks so good!! hahahaha..

    but i would have to say, today's limelight has to go to the bread salad though.. this is the first time i am seeing tossing bread into salad!! i kind of like this, it makes bread so much more interesting than only just toast and sandwich!! and i like the onions, cucumbers and tomatoes..

    p/s: i want to try this PH, got microwave version or not?? muahahaha~~ :D

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    Replies
    1. Haiyo, this one tak boleh use microwave lah. But if you are interested in the salad, you can toast your bread and then toss in the salad with lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. No need the chicken also it taste very good.

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    2. Oops, forgot. You need to add sauteed onions and garlic to the salad to make it super!

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  13. Mmm... I can tell this sumac chicken is very delicious! Definitely going to try this out for sure.
    Thanks for sharing PH :))

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    1. Hi Ann! I hope that you can try this. The salad is especially good!

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  14. wow...when I first see the the pix I already salivating ... makes me want to go to kenny rogers for a fix!!

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    Replies
    1. hah..hah..Chris, I suppose Kenny Rogers can lah....

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  15. Sumac chicken? When I see your title, I faster scroll to the ingredients to see the main ingredients/spice to marinade the chicken.. Uikks, but after reading your whole post, Sumac is just a name of the spice, no breakdown of the ingredients, hehehehe.. But it looks very delicious, very "yap mei", like 5-spice powder, garlic powder, curry powder, everything.. Nice leh...Bread salad looks good too, like crutons..

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    1. Hi Louiz! Yes, sumac is the spice. It has a peculiar smell and it is sour. But nice lah once the chicken is roasted. Yes, the bread is like croutons. Very sedap in the salad. Want to make this again soon.

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  16. Looks good and quite healthy also!

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  17. ah....now i know what's for dinner tmw

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