Sous Vide Curried Chicken Thighs

Lately I’ve been drawn to the flavors of Middle Eastern food.  On a trip out to the city, my fiancé and I enjoyed shawarma together a local Lebanese restaurant.  Shawarma is a beautiful spit-grilled meat, served in a pita with fresh vegetables (often Tabbouleh), and sometimes tahini or hummus.  Inspired by that flavor, I set out to create a sous-vide chicken thigh with the same Middle Eastern spice and recreate the grill flavor using my lovely new torch.  The spice paste I created turned out with more of a curry flavor than originally intended, but we loved it.

Maybe the reason Middle Eastern food speaks to me can be explained by ancestral background–I found out in a DNA test that I have some Sephardi roots.  Whatever the reason, my fiancé has not complained one bit.

Kosher Status : Meat

| Ingredients |

• Eight garlic cloves
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 2 tablespoons coriander
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons allspice
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground pepper
• ¼ tsp cayenne
• 8 pieces boneless, skinless chicken thighs

| Directions |

1. Preheat your sous-vide set-up to 165°F (74°C).
2. Combine all of the ingredients, with the exception of the chicken thighs, into a food processor and grind into a thick paste.
3. Rub the paste all over the chicken thighs and place into either a vacuum sealing bag or into a Zip-Lock type bag.  Seal using your vacuum sealer or, if using a Zip-Lock type bag, use the Archimedes principle.
4. Place the bags into the preheated sous-vide water bath and ensure the bags are submerged.  Cook for one to up to four hours.
5. After the chicken has cooked, remove from the bags and place into a cast iron pan.  Brown/char the chicken using either a high-powered propane torch (not a butane torch, such as those sold for making creme brûlée – they’re much too wimpy!) or under your oven’s broiler set to high.
6. Serve with rice or couscous.

Note: The chicken can be grilled if you don’t have a sous-vide set up.

All photos are by Thirteenth Knight Photo  © 2015