Fine Dining

This month’s dishes may be flattened or finely sliced, but there’s nothing flat about their flavour profiles!

BUTTERFLIED CHICKEN WITH HARISSA Flatties for the win

Moroccan harissa is flavour dynamite in a small bottle! Ingredients (serves 8)

1 large whole chicken

2 tablespoons homemade or bought harissa paste

2 teaspoons strong mustard 1 tablespoon olive oil

1 lemon, to serve

Here’s how

1Use a pair of sharp scissors to cut the chicken between the two breasts and butterfly it open. Press the chicken flat with the palm of your hand and fold in the wings. It’s now ready to be marinated.

2 Score the chicken breasts, thighs and drumsticks with a sharp knife. Mix the harissa, mustard and oil, and rub it into the chicken all over – even under the skin wherever you can.

3Now braai the chicken on a clean grid with the skin side down over moderately hot coals. Place a heavy cast-iron plate or pan with two bricks on top of the chicken to press it down. If you don’t want to use a pan, wrap the bricks in foil. Braai it like this for 10-15 minutes. Peek to make sure the chicken doesn’t burn.

4 Carefully turn the chicken over with tongs. Baste with extra sauce, replace the weight and braai for another 15 minutes. Test the meat by wiggling a drumstick – it should come off easily and the chicken should be cooked and juicy. Season the chicken with salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste, and allow it to rest for a few more minutes in a closed dish before serving.

Drive & Camp says At home, remove the chicken’s backbone and freeze it to make stock another time. That way, the two breasts sit right in the middle of the butterflied chicken– the choice is yours whether you cut the front or the back open.