Pomegranate chicken with chilli and coriander couscous, served with grapefruit yoghurt

With pomegranates being in season, I went a bit crazy last week and bought five. So, last night I decided to try something a bit experimental with them. I know the flavours sound strange but there is a traditional Persian dish very similar to this that is duck and pomegranates. I used chicken instead and honestly found the flavours phenomenal. I'm lucky because I have a manual juicer - getting the juice from pomegranates would have been be a massive hack otherwise. That said, you could just buy 100& pomegranate juice and that would be hundreds. 

The sweet and sour balance is important here so just keep tasting. The end result is similar to a curry in the sense that there are so many layers. Each ingredient comes through and visually it is hard to beat. 

Okay, stuff you'll need to feed 4 people:

• About 8oog of skinless chicken thighs (use breasts if you have to but thighs are far tastier)
• 5 pomegranates, juiced and seeds set aside. (otherwise about 250-300ml pomegranate juice)
• 1 cup of cashews, crushed
• 1-2 lemons, juiced
• 2 tablespoons of honey
• About a teaspoon of cinnamon 
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 cup fat-free plain yoghurt
• 4 cups of prepared couscous (Follow instructions on packet. If you mess this up, you should give up all hope immediately) 
• Half a grapefruit, juiced
• A good handful of coriander, roughly chopped and extra for garnish
• One red chilli, sliced diagonally

What to do:

1. In a deep dish, brown the chicken in some oil. Remove and set aside. 

2. Add the onions and gently fry until soft (about 5 minutes). Add the cashews and cook for another minute. Add the honey, pomegranate juice, lemon juice and cinnamon. Add the chicken and bring the mixture to the boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer for about 45 minutes or until the sauce has reduced to a beautiful sticky consistency. 

3. When the chicken is tender and the sauce tastes right to you, combine the yoghurt and the grapefruit juice. Stir the coriander and chilli through the couscous. 

4. To serve, spoon the couscous onto plates or wide bowls. Place some of the chicken on top and pour over some of the pomegranate sauce over. Carefully spoon some of the grapefruit yoghurt over the top and finally add some pomegranate seeds and some extra coriander. 

It's a brilliant dish and is a bit of a talking point owing to the fact that it's a bit unusual. You'll never know until you try. Did I mention how good it is for you? 

Cheers,

Jamie Who