Our poussin and harissa traybake is an all-in-one bake that is flavoured with Middle Eastern spices. A poussin is a young, and very small chicken, and makes a nice change from regular chicken breast or thighs. If you can’t get hold of any, you can use regular chicken legs or thighs instead. Marinating your poussin overnight means the flavours of harissa have a chance to infuse into the meat and make it really tender as well as tasty. The sweetness of pomegranate seeds pairs perfectly with the sweet and smoky harissa to make this a really well balanced and moreish dish. Why not try making this poussin and harissa traybake instead of your usual Sunday roast chicken?
Ingredients
- 4 poussins
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 3tbsp rose harissa
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 3tbsp buttermilk or natural yogurt
- 4 red onions, peeled and quartered
- 3tbsp olive oil
- 125g pomegranate seeds
- 4tbsp chopped fresh coriander
- 1tbsp sumac
Method
First, prepare the poussins. Cut out the backbone and parson’s nose using kitchen scissors, then split them in half by cutting through the breastbone. mix together the garlic, harissa, lemon zest and juice, and buttermilk. Add the chicken and leave to marinate, preferably overnight. We always find the easiest way is to pop it all in a ziplock bag and leave in the fridge.
When you are ready to cook, heat the oven to 180C. Put the onions, tossed in half the oil, into a roasting tin.
Arrange the poussin pieces on top in a single layer. Drizzle over the remaining oil and add a good sprinkling of sea salt and black pepper. Roast for 50 mins or until browned and cooked through.
To serve, scatter over the pomegranate seeds, coriander and sumac.
