Ingredients

Serves 4

Roast chickens
4 spatchcocks
35 g ground sumac
200 g butter
10 g salt

 

Almond Dressing
For smoking the almonds:
50 g whole shelled almonds
75 g hickory smoking chips
40 g Turkish tea leaves

For toasting almonds:
150 ml extra virgin olive oil
½ tbsp table salt

Vinaigrette:
40ml forum cab sav vinegar
2 medium shallots, very finely diced
½ bunch chives, very finely chopped

 

Corn Salad:
2 corn cobs
30 g shaved red onion red
85 g smoked almond dressing
5 g chive battons
20 g fried puffed corn
5 ml fresh lemon juice
Salt and pepper, to taste

 

Method

For the chicken:
Soften butter until you can put your finger through it but not so it’s melted.
Add sumac and salt and paste the chickens all over.
Place in a large roasting tray and cook at 220°C for 40 - 50 minutes depending on your oven.
Baste the chickens every 10 minutes after they’ve been cooking for 30 minutes, until ready.

Dressing:
To smoke the almonds
Hot smoke the almonds in a food smoker for 15 minutes, or until very heavily smoked. Refer to your smoking unit’s manual.

To toast the almonds:
Place the almonds straight from the smoker into the olive oil.
Place the almonds and the olive oil into a heavy based pot on a low heat and slowly roast the nuts for ten minutes.
Put the almonds into an airtight container and leave to sit overnight.
Toasting the almonds will help the almonds to remain crisp as well as infusing their flavour into the oil.
Note: Toast on low heat, do not burn almonds or olive oil. Do not put lid on storage container till almonds are completely cold.

To make vinaigrette:
Strain almonds from oil, reserve oil.
In a mortar and pestle roughly crush almonds. Crush a small amount at a time to ensure they do not become too fine.
Return almonds back to the olive oil, add shallots and vinegar.
Make this vinaigrette in advance as it will get better with age. Store in an airtight container until ready to use.
Finish vinaigrette with chives before use.

To make Corn Salad:
BBQ corn leaving the husk on for 10 minutes working the corn all way round.
Take the husks off and continue to char grill until you have a nice even colour.
Cut the corn off the cob leaving a mix of single kernels and square pieces.
Fry the puffed corn in oil until it’s crunchy.
Combine all the other ingredients together and mix well.