Turkish · Lunch · Dinner · Snack
Circassian Chicken
Çerkez Tavuğu
Tender poached chicken breast shredded into a creamy, garlicky walnut sauce thickened with wholemeal bread and finished with a drizzle of paprika oil. A classic Turkish meze that is lightened with lean meat and a modest amount of oil.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Total
- 55 min
- Serves
- 4
Calories come from: Carbs 15% · Fat 47% · Protein 38%
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Ingredients
For 4 servings- 600 g (about 3 small breasts)chicken breast, skinless
- 1 medium110 gonion, halved
- 1 medium60 gcarrot, cut in chunks
- 2bay leaves
- 1 tspblack peppercorns
- 5 cups (1.2 L)water
- 1 tsp6 gsalt
- 1 cup100 gwalnuts
- 2 slices60 gwholemeal bread, crusts removed
- 2 cloves6 ggarlic
- 1 tsp5 golive oil
- 1 tspsweet paprika
- 1/2 tspred pepper flakes (pul biber) (optional)
- 2 tbsp8 gfresh parsley, chopped
Steps
- 1
Put the chicken, onion, carrot, bay leaves, peppercorns, half the salt and the water in a pot.
- 2
Bring to a boil, skim off any foam, then lower the heat and simmer gently for 20–25 minutes until the chicken reaches 74 °C / 165 °F in the thickest part.
- 3
Lift out the chicken and let it cool for 10 minutes; strain and keep the stock, discarding the vegetables and spices.
- 4
Tear the bread into pieces and soak it in 1 cup of the warm stock for 5 minutes.
- 5
Blend the walnuts, soaked bread with its stock, garlic and remaining salt until smooth, adding more stock a spoonful at a time until the sauce is thick but spoonable.
- 6
Shred the chicken into thin strands with two forks.
- 7
Mix the chicken with about two thirds of the walnut sauce.
- 8
Spread the chicken on a plate and cover it with the remaining sauce.
- 9
Warm the olive oil gently in a small pan, take it off the heat and stir in the paprika and pepper flakes if using.
- 10
Drizzle the paprika oil over the top, scatter with parsley and serve at room temperature.
Swaps, storage and make-ahead
Swaps
- Use a gluten-free bread labelled that way instead of wholemeal to make the dish gluten-free, as long as your stock is made from scratch as written.
- Swap the chicken breast for boneless skinless chicken thighs for a juicier, richer result.
- Replace the poached chicken with cooked chickpeas, lightly crushed, or roasted cauliflower, and simmer the aromatics in water to make the stock for a vegan version; check that your bread contains no milk, butter or egg.
- Use ground almonds or pecans instead of walnuts if you prefer a milder, less bitter sauce.
Storage
Refrigerate leftovers in a covered container within 2 hours and eat within 3 to 4 days, letting them come to room temperature before serving or warming any portion you want hot until steaming. The walnut sauce can separate and turn grainy when thawed, so this dish is best not frozen.
Make ahead
Poach and shred the chicken and blend the walnut sauce up to a day ahead, keeping both covered in the fridge and loosening the sauce with a little reserved stock. Make the paprika oil and add the parsley just before serving.
Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.
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Allergens and nutrition
Contains: GlutenTree nuts
Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.
Full nutrition
| Per serving (540 g) | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 415 kcal | 77 kcal |
| Protein | 40.2 g | 7.4 g |
| Carbohydrates | 15.3 g | 2.8 g |
| of which sugars | 3.3 g | 0.6 g |
| Fiber | 4 g | 0.7 g |
| Fat | 22.1 g | 4.1 g |
| of which saturated | 2.7 g | 0.5 g |
| Sodium | 744 mg | 138 mg |
Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.
