Chicken thighs with barberries and feta
Barberries, or zereshk, are tiny dried red fruit with a tremendously sharp flavour. They come from Iran, where they're used to add freshness to rice and chicken dishes. Buy them from Middle Eastern grocers or specialist online shops. If you can't get any, use cranberries, chopped and soaked in lemon juice, instead.
4 people
Serving size
Ingredients
8 small chicken thighs (or 4 large ones), boned but with the skin on
For the stuffing:
70g sourdough, cut up into very rough chunks
80g feta, crumbled
15g barberries, soaked in 3 tbsp boiling water
4 spring onions, trimmed and thinly sliced
3 tbsp chopped coriander
3 tbsp chopped parsley
1 garlic clove, chopped
50g pecans, lightly toasted and roughly chopped
½ tsp salt, plus a little extra to season the chicken
Freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Heat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Blitz the sourdough in a food processor until you have small crumbs. Place in a large bowl, add all the other stuffing ingredients and mix well. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking.
- Place the chicken thighs skin-side down on a baking sheet lined with nonstick paper. Place one to two tablespoons of stuffing in the centre of each thigh, filling it up well, then roll up and secure with a cocktail stick. Turn the thighs over, so that the seam side faces down, and season with a little salt.
- Roast for 25 minutes, or until cooked through. Leave to rest for five minutes, then serve hot or at room temperature.