Joojeh Kabob Recipe Persian Saffron Chicken Skewers
There is something magical about food on sticks that makes me smile, these Persian joojeh kabobs not only look wonderful but they taste amazing too. They get their colour from a marinade of saffron, yoghurt, lemon juice and olive oil and are threaded onto skewers and cooked in a hot griddle pan.
Servings 2 Servings
Calories 482kcal
Ingredients
- ⅛-¼ teaspoon Saffron Strands Around 0.25g
- 2 tablespoon Luke Warm Water
- 2 Chicken Breasts 350-400g or 12-14oz Total
- 1 Medium Onion 150g
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil for the marinade
- 2 tablespoon Lemon Juice
- 75 ml Greek Yoghurt ⅓ Cup
- 10-12 Black Peppercorns
- ½ teaspoon Coarse Salt
- 2 tablespoon Olive Oil to be used just before cooking
Instructions
- Grind the saffron in a pestle and mortar, then pour over the warm water and allow it to sit whilst you prepare the chicken.
- Cut the chicken breasts into 20-25mm (¾-1") chunks
- Check that the water soaking the saffron has cooled a little, then pour it over the chicken massaging it into the meat and allow it to sit for 15 minutes whilst you prepare the rest of the marinade. Be sure to scrape out all of the saffron, it's pricy stuff!
- Grate the onion, then wrap it in a clean tea towel, squeeze out as much moisture as you can and add it to a bowl.
- Add the lemon juice, olive oil (1 Tablespoon) and yoghurt to the onion.
- By now the chicken should have been sitting for 15 minutes and started to take on a lovely colour, add the chicken to the yoghurt.
- Place the salt and black pepper in the pestle and mortar and give it a good grind, don't worry about it being wet, this will help get the rest of the saffron from it. Add this ground mix to the yoghurt and chciken give it a good stir. Cover it with cling film and allow it to marinate for up to 24 hours. Try to give it at least 2 hours!
- Once the chicken has been marinated remove it from the fridge 20-30 minutes before you cook, this is also a good time to soak your skewers if you are using bamboo skewers.
- Remove the chicken from the marinade and scrape off any big bits of onion, then thread the chicken onto skewers and set aside.
- Before grilling the chicken, stir 2 extra tablespoons of olive oil through the marinade.
- Heat a griddle pan over a high heat and cook the skewers for 7-8 minutes flipping every minute or two, brushing with the marinade as you go. Check that the chicken has reached 73°C or 165°F before serving.
Video
Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 482kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 67g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 179mg | Sodium: 776mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 5g
