Double Lemon Chicken
Ingredients
For the Egg Wash:
- 1 whole egg
- 1 tbsp. water
For the Chicken:
- 2 medium egg whites
- 2 tbsp. soy sauce
- 2 tbsp. cornstarch
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
- 4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- ⅓ cup neutral oil, such as sunflower oil
- 1 spring onion, trimmed and finely sliced at an angle
- 1 tbsp. green onions, chopped
- 2 tbsp. lemon juice
For the Cheater's Preserved Lemon Paste:
- 1 large unwaxed lemon, ends trimmed and discarded, then cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds, seeds removed
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 2 tsp. flaky sea salt
For the Lemon Sauce:
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1-½ tbsp. unsalted butter
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
- 1 tbsp. caster or granulated sugar
- ⅛ tsp. ground turmeric
- 1-½ tsp. ground cumin
- 1-½ tbsp. cornstarch
- 2 tbsp. lemon juice,
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
Instructions
To prepare the egg wash:
- In a small bowl, combine the egg and the water together and whisk vigorously until well combined and very smooth; add a bit more water if needed to thin out.
To prepare the chicken:
- In a large bowl, whisk together the egg whites, soy sauce, cornstarch, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a good grind of pepper until there aren’t any lumps; about 30 seconds.
- Working one breast at a time, place the chicken between 2 pieces of parchment paper and use a meat mallet (or the bottom of a pan) to pound the chicken evenly so it’s a scant 1/2-inch thick.
- Transfer to the egg white bowl and continue with the remaining pieces of chicken.
- Stir everything together gently to coat; refrigerate to marinate for at least an hour, or overnight, if you prefer.
To prepare the preserved lemon paste:
- Meanwhile, make the preserved lemon paste.
- Add all the ingredients to a small, lidded saucepan, set over medium-high heat.
- Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat to medium-low, cover and cook for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the rinds start to look translucent and the juice has reduced by about half; set aside to cool slightly.
- Transfer everything to a small food processor and blitz until you have a smooth, spreadable paste; you should have about 1/4 cup.
- Set aside 3 tablespoons for the sauce, then store the rest in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks.
To prepare the sauce:
- Add the 3 tablespoons preserved lemon paste, the stock, butter, garlic, sugar, turmeric and half the cumin to a medium saucepan; place it over medium-high heat.
- Bring to a boil and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, until reduced by about a third.
- Measure out roughly 3 tablespoons of the sauce into a small bowl, then add the cornstarch and whisk until there are no lumps.
- Whisk this back into the sauce pot and cook for 1 minute, whisking continuously, until smooth and thickened slightly.
- Remove from the heat.
- Heat the oil, in a large high-sided frying pan, over a medium-high heat.
- Once hot (a sprinkle of cornstarch dropped into the oil should sizzle right away), fry two of the chicken breasts for 3 minutes per side, or until nicely browned and just cooked through.
- It should release easily from the skillet with a little help from a metal spatula.
- Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and continue with the remaining 2 breasts.
- It might spit, so turn down the heat if needed.
- Wipe out the frying pan, add the sauce and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat.
- Add back all the chicken breasts and cook for just 3 minutes, gently turning them halfway.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the 2 tablespoons of lemon juice.
- Transfer the chicken breasts (cut them into strips, if you like) to a large serving platter with a lip and pour the sauce all over.
- Sprinkle with the remaining cumin.
- In a small bowl, toss together the spring onion, green onions and remaining 2 tablespoons of lemon juice; spoon this all over.