Chicken chakhokhbili with bulgur

Servings: 4

• Skinless chicken thighs, bone-in1,000 g
• Ripe tomatoes700 g
• Onions2
• Red bell pepper1
• Garlic cloves4
• Coriander leaves30 g
• Tomato paste1 tbsp
• Sunflower oil2 tbsp
• Coarse bulgur250 g
• Ground coriander1 tsp
• Utskho-suneli (ground blue fenugreek)1 tsp
• Ground red pepperto taste
• Saltto taste

One step per screen, large, with timers.

Method

1. 01

   Score a cross in each tomato, drop them into boiling water for 1 minute, then straight into cold water. Peel and dice them finely.

   1 min timer

2. 02

   Slice the onions into half-rings and the pepper into thin strips. Chop the garlic and the coriander leaves finely.

3. 03

   Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a heavy-based sauté pan or deep frying pan over high heat. Brown the thighs in a single layer for 4 minutes on each side until golden, in two batches if they do not all fit. Transfer to a plate.

   4 min timer

4. 04

   Turn the heat down to medium, add the rest of the oil, the onions and the pepper. Cook, stirring, for 7–8 minutes until the onion is soft and translucent. Stir in the tomato paste, ground coriander, utskho-suneli and red pepper to taste and cook for 1 more minute.

   8 min timer

5. 05

   Add the tomatoes, return the chicken with its juices and bring to the boil. Cover and simmer over low heat for 40 minutes, turning the thighs once halfway, until the meat is tender and comes away from the bone easily.

   40 min timer

6. 06

   While the chicken simmers, measure the bulgur in a cup and bring twice that volume of water to the boil with a pinch of salt. Pour in the bulgur, cover and cook over low heat for 15 minutes until the water is absorbed. Take it off the heat and leave covered for 10 more minutes.

   15 min timer

7. 07

   Stir the garlic and most of the coriander leaves into the chakhokhbili and season with salt to taste. If the sauce is thin, simmer uncovered for 5 minutes until it thickens.

   5 min timer

8. 08

   Spoon the bulgur onto plates, top with the chicken and sauce and scatter over the remaining coriander leaves.

Allergens

• gluten

Shop-bought products differ — check the label.

If you leave something out

Meat and poultry

Without the chicken it is a different dish. The same sauce works with aubergine: cut 2 aubergines into large chunks, brown them in 2 tbsp of oil instead of the chicken and simmer in the tomatoes for 20 minutes.

Gluten

Instead of bulgur, use rice or buckwheat, cooked as the packet says.