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Recipe Archive

Part one in an astonishingly occasional series. I mean really occasional. As occasional as those days where you don't wake up with an indefinable sense of dread.

So anyway, as coastalblog readers will doubtless be aware, I'm quite fond of food. I think it's nice. My cookbook Food is nice will shortly be available in all reputable my houses. Today's recipe, created and tinkered with for a colleague whose general aceness DEMANDS that she has recipes created in her honour is...

Philippa Chicken.

Take some pieces of skin on chicken, thighs for preference, and marinade. Marinade as follows. Tblspn Tamarind Paste, half a glass dark soy, half a glass dry white, a dash or six of fino sherry, 1 diced medium chilli, a couple of teaspoons muscovado sugar, one scant teaspoon of mustard. Make small incisions in the skin to allow the marinade to penetrate. Stick it in the fridge. A few hours should do the trick Make sure to turn them so they're coated all over. Take yourself off for a nice walk or something, failing that, read a book.

When they're done whack a little salt and pepper on the skins, brush 'em lightly with sesame oil and roast off in a medium hot oven for forty minutes or so. Skin should be crispy as all get out.

Ideally this should be served with crisp, lightly fried carrots julienne, mange tout and shredded greens, dressed with lemon juice and cumin. An excellent thing to do would be to take some marinade, add as much again white wine and boil down to half it's volume, then pour it on top. Serve with much pulling of silly faces. (Ideal wine, Alsatian Gewurtztraminer, though some fizzy pop would be nice). Lollies for afters.

Coming soon, Jimmy Parker Penne, just for the pun....

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