Tahmina Martelly shows us how to make a dish that will please any crowd and takes less than 20 minutes to put together!
Moroccan spiced coconut chicken
8 chicken tenders
3 tbsp coconut milk
1 egg
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp turmeric
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp smoked paprika
½ tsp granulated garlic
1 tsp sea salt
3/4 cup panko
3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut
Creamy coconut cilantro dipping sauce
1 cup mayonnaise
3 tbsp coconut milk
2 -3 Tbsp roughly chopped cilantro
1 Tbsp honey
½ tsp sea salt (kosher or table salt are also okay)
Zest of half lime
1 tsp fresh lime juice
Method for Chicken:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium size bowl mix together turmeric, cinnamon, cumin, salt, paprika and garlic. Add the chicken to the bowl and rub the spices to cover all the pieces.
In a separate bowl beat the egg and the coconut milk with a fork until well blended. Set aside. In a plate or pie pan, mix together the panko breading and coconut flakes until everything is well incorporated. Make an assembly line with the egg mixture first and then the coconut/panko mixture next. Dip each spice coated chicken piece in the egg mixture and shake off any excess. Place each piece in the coconut and panko mixture and press in gently to coat all sides. Place each chicken piece on parchment lined cookie sheet. Cook for 16-18 minutes until coconut coating is nice and golden brown, turning over the pieces once in between. This can be a great appetizer when cut into nugget size pieces or served over a salad or as a main dish with sweet potato rosemary oven baked fries. The dipping sauce makes a very nice salad dressing as well.
Method for dipping sauce:
In a blender, place all the ingredients of the dipping sauce (zest the lime first before cutting it and using the juice). Blend until smooth. It should be lightly green and creamy. Set aside to chill in the fridge until ready to use.
Sweet potato rosemary oven baked fries
2 large garnet or jewel yams
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp olive oil
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment or lightly spray it with oil coating.
Wash the garnet or jewel yams well, making sure to scrub the skin. Pat dry. Leaving the skin on, cut into thin strips. Lay the pieces on the cookie sheet and sprinkle with rosemary and salt. Pour teaspoon of olive oil onto your hands and rub them together. Gently pat hands over the sliced yams. Bake for 16-18 minutes or until tender. Serve hot.
Recipe by: Tahmina Martelly RD
