Preserved Lemon Chicken

Gluten free, dairy free, sugar free, nut free, egg free
    It has occurred to me that my blog is so far a little biased towards sweet treats...probably because I am too! But it's time to start posting some more yummy, savoury, friendly dishes for your enjoyment. Introducing Preserved Lemon Chicken...barbecued chicken pieces covered with an easy but incredibly full of flavour marinade. All ingredients go in a food processor, get slapped on the chicken and popped in the fridge till ready to cook. All you need on the side is a bit of salad, or some corn cobs done alongside the chicken on the BBQ.  Mashed potato or cauliflower mash would also work nicely.

I make my own preserved lemons during winter when lemons are plentiful, and use them all year round to add flavour to my food. My recipe is here. You can buy also them from delis and specialty stores. I haven't tried it, but I imagine you could use the finely grated rind of a couple of lemons if you don't have preserved lemons. It'll be a more intense, bitey flavour than the rich, sweet preserved lemons, though.

Make more than you'll need for one meal when you cook this- it's yummy for a left over lunch the next day!

Ingredients

• 4 quarters of preserved lemon (or equivalent of one whole preserved lemon)
  
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice (if I don't have fresh lemons on hand I use a couple of spoonfuls of the liquid that the preserved lemons are sitting in)
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika  (or use hot paprika if you want a spicy bite to your marinade)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper.
• A couple of handfuls of your herb of choice. The original recipe I used had coriander in it, but I've also made this with oregano and chives, or rosemary.
• 1 kg free range or organic chicken breasts or thighs

Method
Remove the pulp from the preserved lemon, keeping only the skins, and wash thoroughly. Place all ingredients (except chicken) in a food processor and blend until smooth (it makes a thick marinade, not a runny one). 

Place the chicken pieces in a glass or ceramic dish and smear all over with the marinade. Cover, and place in fridge for at least one hour (preferably a few hours or overnight).

Barbeque the chicken on a very hot, oiled plate till cooked through (about 20 minutes). Enjoy!