Grilled #Chicken or Salmon with Spicy #Romesco Sauce

Spiced up this classic Catalan sauce and then smeared it over chicken, salmon fillets before grilling and even used as a base for a fish curry over the next few days.

Sweet, smoky, nutty and this version has a nice spicy kick with the inclusion of chilli flakes.

Itโ€™s great to have in the fridge to brighten things up.

Itโ€™s delicious as a dip on itโ€™s own as well. The recipe makes a big bowl of it so use it as you please!

Sauce: Prep time 40 minutes

Ingredients:

ยท 2 large red capsicums

ยท       1 tomato

ยท       6 cloves of garlic with skin on

ยท       1 slice of white bread

ยท       ยฝ cup of nuts โ€“ I used walnuts but traditional is almonds

ยท       1 tbsp sherry vinegar (or red/white wine) โ€“ I used apple cider vinegar

ยท       1 tablespoon smoked paprika

ยท       2 teaspoons chilli flakes

ยท       1 tsp salt

ยท 3 tablespoons olive oil

Method:

Heat oven to 200 degrees celcius

Wrap tomato and garlic in foil

Place red capsicums whole in oven, alongside foil parcel

Grill turning red capsicums until blackened and char grilled on all sides

Remove capsicums and foil parcel from oven

Put bread and nuts in hot oven and grill until nuts are browned and bread is toasted on both sides โ€“ take care not to burn nuts (lower oven heat to 170 degrees or so) my walnuts got a bit dark but it still tasted good!

Place blackened capsicums in a plastic bag and seal โ€“ leave to steam and cool, remove skin and seeds โ€“ put in blender

Remove skin from tomato and peel garlic and put in blender with rest of ingredients โ€“ break toasted bread into large โ€œcrumbsโ€

Whizz until smooth thick paste forms, place in bowl.

Chicken Thigh Cutlets: Marinate overnight if you like, cooking time: 35-40 minutes

Ingredients:

4-6 chicken thigh cutlets โ€“ skin on and bone in

1 tablespoon olive oil

Fresh Thyme

Black peppper

Method:

ยท Rub Chicken thigh cutlets with 2-3 tablespoons of romesco sauce โ€“ leave to marinate for a while, even overnight if you can but itโ€™s not mandatory.

ยท Sprinkle with black pepper, thyme and olive oil – might need a bit more salt

ยท       Place in hot oven 175 degrees Celsius

ยท Roast until skin crisps up and chicken is cooked through – about 30 minutes, then turn up to 250 degrees for 5 -10 minutes to crisp up skin

ยท Serve with salad, rice or roast vegetables with romesco sauce on side.

Salmon Fillets

Smear Salomon fillets with romesco sauce, grill in hot oven 180 degrees for 15 minutes or so, turn skin side up, turn up oven to 250 degrees and grill until skin crisps up for about 5 minutes, I served this with couscous and a vegetable tagine with preserved lemons.

Published by

Shanthini

Born in South Africa, of Indian heritage. My family moved to Australia in the early 80's. I have a busy professional career as the CEO of a Healthcare Foundation based in Sydney. I love cooking, learning to cook, eating and travel. My blog Freespiritfood.net is written in the spirit of sharing my foodie adventures.

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