Zaatar-crusted chicken and cous cous salad

Name: Zaatar-crusted chicken and cous cous salad
Cook time: 1 h
Yield: 6-8
Cuisine: Modern Australian
Ingredients: 1½ cups Israeli cous cous; 250g cherry tomatoes, halved; 2 cups mixed salad leaves; 1 Lebanese cucumber, diced; olive oil

Katrina Meynink

September 19, 2022

Serve this zaatar-crusted chicken salad with flatbreads for extra carbs.Katrina Meynink

Time:30 mins - 1 hourServes:6-8

This is the best spring salad, with enough zest and life for the hot weather to come, but with a foot still firmly in the cooler months, thanks to mounds of cous cous for fill and carbohydrate. This salad does well after sit in the fridge, too – just freshen up the leftovers with some additional lettuce leaves.

Ingredients

Salad

1½ cups Israeli cous cous
250g cherry tomatoes, halved
2 cups mixed salad leaves
1 Lebanese cucumber, diced
olive oil

Crusted chicken

4-6 chicken thighs
½ cup plain flour
2 eggs, lightly whisked
2-3 cups panko breadcrumbs
2 tbsp zaatar
pinch sumac
2 tbsp black sesame seeds
2 tbsp white sesame seeds
salt and pepper to season
¼ cup rice bran oil (or other flavourless oil)

Feta-yoghurt dressing

½ cup Persian-style feta
1 cup thick Greek-style yoghurt
1 garlic clove, grated

To serve

pinch sumac or chilli flakes (optional)
flatbreads

Method

Step 1
Preheat oven to 170C fan-forced (190C conventional). Cook the cous cous according to packet instructions. Strain and add to a large bowl with a drizzle of olive oil to prevent the grains from sticking. Season with salt and pepper, then set aside to cool.
Step 2
Set 3 bowls along your bench and add, from left to right, the flour, followed by the whisked eggs, and then the panko, zaatar, sumac and sesame seeds in the final bowl.
Step 3
Roll the thighs out so they are flat (no need to flatten them with a mallet), then coat each fillet in flour before dredging in the whisked egg and finally coating in the panko crumbs.
Step 4
Place an ovenproof frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the oil, and once shimmering, add the chicken, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. Cook for 1-3 minutes or until the chicken takes on a lovely golden colour. Flip the chicken then pop the pan in the oven for 6 minutes or until the chicken has cooked through. Slice for serving.
Step 5
Once the cous cous has cooled, add the tomato, salad leaves and cucumber to the bowl, and toss gently to combine.
Step 6
For the dressing, add the ingredients to a small bowl and using a fork, stir and mash to incorporate the feta through the yoghurt.
Step 7
To serve, add the salad to the base of a serving plate. Top with the chicken slices and generous dollops of the yoghurt dressing. Season with salt, pepper and a little extra sumac or chilli flakes for brightness, and serve.