Chicken Thighs in Chraimeh Sauce
Chraimeh sauce is a tangy tomato-based sauce that originates from Tripoli Lebanon. It combines an array of spices (ground caraway seeds, sweet paprika, cinamon, cumin, cayenne, and salt), chiles, garlic, lemon, and a bit of sugar for good measure. Chraimeh sauce carries as much heat as you desire, but you can cut back the heat by reducing the cayenne and hot peppers. I always double the sauce recipe to allow extra for the rice and for dipping. You really can’t be beat this dish with organic farm raised chicken thighs, wild sockeye salmon from Alaska, or wild Alaskan halibut.
This recipe comes from one of my cooking heros, Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. It is directly out of their amazing cookbook Jerusalem. If you don’t have this cookbook and like to cook unique recipes that will excite your thirst for travel and delight your sense of smell and taste, get this book. I haven’t exhausted my exploration of the recipes and am continually excited to try the next recipe.
This recipe makes enough for four servings. The recipe is for a single volume of sauce but I always double it so that I have extra sauce and would advise you to do the same.
Gather up the ingredients and start cooking. It takes about an hour from start to finish, so prepare rice and keep it warm for serving. This recipe is wonderful with a challah, which you will want to dip into the sauce.
6 tablespoons avocado oil
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 pounds of organic, boneless skinless chicken thighs or 1 1/2— 2 pounds of wild Alaskan sockeye salmon or halibut fillet, skin removed and cut into four portions
6 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1 tablespoon caraway seeds, dry toasted and freshly ground
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
rounded 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
rounded 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 green chile, coarsely chopped
2/3 cup water
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped cilantro for serving
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
Heat two tablespoons of avocado oil over high heat in a large frying pan with a lid. Place the flour in a shallow bowl, season generously with salt and pepper, and toss the chicken (or fish) in it. Shake off the excess flour and sear the chicken (or fish) for a minute or two on each side, until golden. Remove the chicken (or fish) and wipe the pan clean.
Place the garlic, spices, chile, and two tablespoons of the avocado oil in a food processor and blitz to form a thick paste (leave out the cayenne if you don’t like spice but keep the chile). You might need a tad bit more oil to create the paste so add a splash if needed. I have a little food processor that attaches to my immersion blender and it is perfect for this task. Everyone needs an immersion blender so you might as well get the one with the food processor attachment.
Pour the remaining two tablespoons of avocado oil into the frying pan, heat well, and add the spice paste. Stir and fry the paste for 30 seconds being careful not to burn the spices. Quickly add the water and tomato paste, which will spit a bit, so be careful. Stir to combine and bring the sauce to a simmer. Add the sugar, lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and some pepper. Taste to season.
Put the chicken (or fish) in the sauce and smother it in the sauce. Bring the sauce to a gentle simmer, cover the pan, and cook for 7-15 minutes until the chicken reaches a internal temperature of 165 degrees F. For fish cook for 7-11 minutes until the fish flakes. Remove the pan from the heat, take off the lid, and leave to cool down. Serve the chicken (or fish) warm on rice or couscous. Garnish with cilantro and lemon wedges.