It’s always an event when Yotam Ottolenghi releases a new cookbook, and the launch date of the chef-restaurateur’s latest has been in our calendars for a while now. His last two major cookbooks, Flavour and Simple, declared their intentions on the cover; so too does Comfort, dedicated to comforting food with an Ottolenghi spin, interwoven with memories of the chef’s travels and childhood.
The new book even has an Australian touch – co-author and Ottolenghi recipe developer Helen Goh was born in Malaysia and migrated to Australia at 10, later beginning her cooking career Down Under before heading to London. Like so many others in Comfort, this recipe reflects that movement and relocation; and pays tribute to her time working with Stephanie Kamener of Caribbean diner Mama Blu’s in Elwood, Melbourne.
“Steph was a Jamaican chef Helen worked with many years ago in Melbourne,” writes Ottolenghi. “A lot of time has passed since the recipe for Steph’s roasted jerk-spiced meats was handed on – passed around the kitchen, scribbled down on a scrap of paper – but it’s been with Helen ever since. Recipes, like postcards, flying around the world with the scent of a place on one side, scribbled greetings on the other.
“We served the chicken with a simple slaw made with half a small cabbage and a quarter of a pineapple, both thinly sliced, some freshly flaked coconut, sliced jalapeno, spring onion, coriander and mint. It’s dressed with olive oil, lime juice and maple syrup.”
Yotam Ottolenghi and Helen Goh’s chicken with Steph’s spice
Serves 4, with rice and salad
Preparation time: 15 minutes, plus 6 hours (or overnight) marinade, 10 minutes resting
Cooking time: 47 minutes
Ingredients
1 tsp whole allspice berries (aka pimento)
2 bay leaves, roughly torn
1½ tsp hot chilli powder
1½ tsp paprika
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp mixed spice (the sweet one, like pumpkin spice)
25g light soft brown sugar
1½ tbsp runny honey
1–2 green jalapeño chillies, finely chopped
1–2 red Scotch bonnet (habanero) chillies, finely chopped
1 small red onion (100g), cut into 1cm dice
2 spring onions (30g), finely chopped
50ml olive oil
1kg chicken thighs, bone in, skin on
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
Salt
Method
Put the allspice and bay leaves into a dry pan and toast for 1–2 minutes, until the bay leaves have blistered. Using a pestle and mortar, crush to a powder, then tip into a large bowl along with all the remaining ingredients apart from the chicken and vinegar. Add 1 tsp of salt, mix well to combine, then add the chicken. Massage well, so that all the thighs are coated, then keep in the fridge, covered, for at least 6 hours (or overnight).
Half an hour before you are going to cook the chicken, take it out of the fridge, add the vinegar and toss to combine.
Preheat the oven to 180°C fan.
Spread the chicken out on a large parchment-lined baking tray, skin side up. Bake for about 45 minutes, rotating the tray halfway through, until crisp and golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Extracted from Ottolenghi COMFORT by Yotam Ottolenghi, Helen Goh, Verena Lochmuller and Tara Wigley (Ebury Press, $65). All photography by Jonathan Lovekin.
