Chicken and walnut stew with petimezi, and saffron basmati rice (A different Persian Fesenjan)

There are certain dishes that you fall in love with instantly. It may be a dish you’ve had at a restaurant or at that friend’s house who’s a great cook, a recipe you tried from a blog or cookbook, or even something you created yourself that turned out unexpectedly good. This dish is a mix of the above. It’s one I have tried at a friend’s house years back and that when I found the recipe for in a cookbook I got for my birthday last month, I played around with a few times, adapted it to suit my taste and the result was fantastic. I fell in love with it.

It is a chicken and walnut stew with petimezi (Greek grape molasses/grape-must syrup), and it may not be the best-looking dish you’ll ever come across, but it is seriously delicious. It is everything a stew should be and more; warming and comforting but also exciting and different.

It is based on a traditional Persian recipe named Khoresh-e Fesenjan, or just Fesenjan, which is a chicken and walnut stew with pomegranate molasses. I changed it to suit my Greek tastes by substituting the very tart pomegranate molasses with the sweeter Greek petimezi that has a far more interesting and intricate flavor in my opinion, and in order to counteract that sweetness and to provide sharpness and spiciness, I also added red-wine vinegar, tomato paste, saffron and ground turmeric.

I may be against messing with traditional recipes, and I hope any Persian friends out there don’t hold it against me for playing around with such a beloved recipe of theirs, but this was incredibly good. The Persians eat this at celebrations and weddings and I can totally understand why. It is a marvelous stew.

The walnuts are ground and then cooked in water for an hour until they soften. The petimezi, the chicken and the rest of the ingredients are then added and they slowly simmer for about two hours, until the chicken becomes so tender that it falls apart with the touch of the fork and the walnut sauce takes on a deep, dark color.

I have a bit of a sweet tooth and this savory dish hits all the right spots. It’s a multilayered dish, mainly earthy and nutty from the walnuts, sweet from the petimezi but not overwhelmingly so, with subtle sharp notes from the vinegar. It’s meaty and deep-flavored, with the chicken falling off the bone but without losing its texture, and with the slightly bitter walnuts being thick and pleasantly grainy creating an almost chocolatey sauce.

The metallic flavor of the saffron and the turmeric adds another layer of complexity to the dish while the fresh pomegranate seeds on top provide acidity and crunch. They are not decorative, mind you, they do serve a purpose flavor-wise and texture-wise. The fresh mint that’s sprinkled on top adds freshness and vibrancy to the rich and thick sauce, and all those deep flavors and heady aromas are then paired with a saffron-scented basmati rice to ultimately create an intriguing dish.

P.S. As mentioned in my four previous posts, apart from your votes, there’s a panel of judges at the Greek VIMA Gourmet Food Blog Awards competition, who will judge specific recipes submitted for the competition using sponsors’ ingredients. One of the sponsors is #Knorr. So, this dish is submitted for one of the categories I’m nominated in, “Best Cooking Blog”. If you wish, you can still vote for me here for Best Cooking Blog, here for Best Sweet Treats and here for Best Food Photography & Styling by clicking the “like” button below the Greek text and next to where it says “Like for Vote” in each category. You will make me very happy if you do. Thank you very much for your support!!

Chicken and walnut stew with petimezi (grape molasses), and saffron basmati rice (A different Persian Fesenjan)

This is a chicken and walnut stew meaning that the walnuts are an integral part of the dish and they are as much of a main ingredient as is the chicken; they’re not just the sauce you pour over the meat, so don’t be sparse with the walnut sauce, add it to your plate plentifully.

This stew needs 3 hours of cooking so take it into consideration when you decide to cook it. Also, as with every stew out there, it is at its best flavor the next day and the day after.
This dish is perfect for a holiday/celebratory dinner, and since you can make it a couple of days ahead of time, it will free you up for other dishes you wish to make, chores, etc.

Don’t be tempted to use chicken with the skin on because the stew will be too fatty. The walnuts have enough natural oil to flavor the dish.

If you have any leftover walnut sauce you can serve it with rice, buglur, couscous or quinoa and some steamed or boiled root vegetables.

Yield: 6-8 servings

Ingredients

for the stew (heavily adapted from Persiana by Sabrina Ghayour)
1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
550 g walnut halves
1.2 liters cold water
1 chicken stock cube
1 heaped Tbsp tomato paste
9 chicken thighs (1.3-1.4 kg), bone-in, skin removed
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 Tbsp olive oil
2 large red onions (260 g net weight), peeled and thinly sliced
1½ Tbsp ground turmeric
450 ml petimezi (Greek grape molasses), make sure it is of good quality
40 ml red-wine vinegar
A good pinch of saffron strands

for the rice
2 cups basmati rice
2 Tbsp sunflower oil
2½ cup boiling water
1 tsp salt
A good pinch of saffron strands

to serve
Pomegranate seeds (from 1 pomegranate)
Coarsely chopped walnuts (about 70 g)
A handful of fresh mint leaves, chopped

Special equipment: food processor, large (about 6.5 liters capacity) heavy-based pan with lid (I use a Dutch oven)


Preparation

make the stew
Finely grind the walnuts in a food processor, in batches if your processor is small. Be careful not to over-process them and they become a paste. You want them finely ground but dry.

In a large, heavy-bottomed pan (like a Dutch oven), add the flour and place over a medium heat. Toast flour, stirring continuously with a wooden spatula, until it turns a light beige color. Add the ground walnuts to the pan and cook stirring continuously for 2 minutes, being careful not to burn them. Add the cold water, the chicken stock cube and the tomato paste and bring the mixture to a simmer. Put the lid on the pan, turn heat down to low and cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes in order to soften the walnuts, stirring every 20 minutes and scraping the bottom of the pan to ensure the walnuts don’t stick to it.

While the walnuts are cooking, prepare the chicken. Take the thighs and inspect if there are any rogue little pieces of bone attached to the flesh of the chicken (apart of course from the main thigh-bone in the middle) and remove it with a knife. Also, trim off any fat that is still attached on the meat. Season the chicken with salt and freshly ground black pepper and in a large frying pan, add 2 Tbsp of olive oil and place over a medium heat. When the oil starts to shimmer, add the chicken thighs, working in batches to avoid over-crowding the pan, and brown them lightly on all sides. Transfer them on a plate and set aside. In the same pan, add 2 more Tbsp of olive oil and when hot add the sliced onions and the turmeric. Sauté the onions until they soften and take on a light brown color, for about 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and place the chicken thighs on top of the onions.

Continuing with the walnuts, once they are ready, add the petimezi, the vinegar, the saffron and 1 tsp salt to the pan, stir to mix well, cover the pan and continue to cook over low heat for 15 minutes. Then, add the chicken thighs and the onions and stir. Cover with the lid and cook on low heat for about 2 hours, stirring every 20 minutes and scraping the bottom of the pan in order to ensure that the walnuts are not sticking to it. You need to be vigilant because they tend to burn easily, so don’t forget to stir, but be careful not to mess too much with the chicken because it will break apart, especially during the last hour of cooking when it’ll be tender. When ready, the mixture should have the rich, dark color of chocolate and the walnut sauce should be thick. Check the seasoning and add more salt if it needs it.

If you don’t serve it the day you cook it, leave it to cool completely in the pan, with the lid ajar, and then transfer it to an airtight container and place it in the fridge for up to 3 days.

make the rice
I always make this rice following the 1:1¼ method of measuring. Which means that for every 1 cup of rice, I add 1¼ cup water. It works perfectly each time for me.

Add the rice to a sieve and place it under cool running water. Rinse the rice until the water runs clean. Leave to dry for 5 minutes.

In a small saucepan, add the sunflower oil and heat over medium-high heat. When it starts to shimmer, add the rice and toast, stirring constantly with a spoon or spatula for 1 minute. Add the boiling water, salt and the saffron and stir well. Bring to the boil and turn heat down to low. Put on the lid and simmer for about 20 minutes. At this point, the rice should be cooked. If you see water still in the pan, boil for longer but keep an eye on it so it doesn’t dry up and catch at the bottom.

Remove from the heat and leave with the lid on for a further 5 minutes. Then, using a fork, fluff up the rice, put the lid on and let it stand for 5-7 minutes, as it will continue to steam.

serve the dish
Serve the rice immediately in individual plates. Top with the stew and sprinkle some pomegranate seeds on top, a few chopped walnuts and some chopped mint.

Greek roasted pork loin with petimezi (grape molasses)

Hello all. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and enjoyed good food with your loved ones.

Are you full yet? I know I am. But that doesn’t stop me from eating some more. Well, it is the holidays after all. I can feel guilty about it afterwards. For the time being, let me rejoice in the food and the people I love. I suggest you do the same.

Greeks traditionally eat pork on Christmas and/or on New Year's. So if you would like to feast like a Greek, let me share with you a recipe for pork loin with petimezi that is truly delicious, if I do say so myself.

Petimezi is Greek grape molasses which comes from moustos (grape must). The thick, viscous petimezi is used in Greek cuisine as a condiment in salad dressings, to enrich sauces for meat and poultry, with eggs, cheese, in traditional cakes and cookies named moustokouloura, you name it. Here, I used it as part of a glaze along with mustard and olive oil.

The pork, slathered with the glossy glaze, sits on a bed of garlic heads cut in half, sliced juicy oranges and lemons, and whole, aromatic fresh herbs like rosemary, thyme and sage. Everything gets a generous drizzle of olive oil and the pork is roasted in the oven. After an hour, out comes the succulent meat.

The pork’s crust is slightly caramelized and underneath hides the juicy and tender meat. The fragrance of the citrus, of the sweet and sour petimezi, of the herbs and the mustard has permeated the pork and its flavor is now sweet, tangy and zesty. The sauce, made from the deglazed pan juices, petimezi (again) and balsamic vinegar, finished off with some butter to give it a beautiful sheen, completes the picture. Poured all over the slices of supple meat, it is a wonderful combination and a winner on a festive table.

I wish you all a Happy New Year with health and happiness!

Petimezi and mustard-glazed roasted pork loin with herbs and citrus fruits, and a petimezi and balsamic vinegar sauce

Pork loin is lean so it needs careful cooking as it can dry out very easily. Having a meat thermometer is very handy to ensure that it’s cooked properly.

I love serving it with the garlic that has cooked down to soft, plump cloves and with the herbs, picking some with each bite to give extra flavor to the meat. Roast potatoes, rice or celeriac purée and a big salad would make great accompaniments.

Don’t be tempted to serve the pork without the sauce. It needs it, not only for flavor but for moistness.
I didn’t add any flour to the sauce because I didn’t want it to be thick, but if you prefer it on the thick side, add half a teaspoon to a teaspoon of flour or corn flour.

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients
1.2 kg center-cut pork loin (with a little fat on top, no bones), tied (you can ask your butcher to tie it for you if can’t do it)
1 large orange, sliced thickly
1 lemon, sliced
2 heads of garlic, cut in half crosswise
4-5 fresh rosemary sprigs
5 fresh sage sprigs
5-6 fresh thyme sprigs
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
6 Tbsp olive oil
½ cup water

for the glaze
4 Tbsp Greek petimezi (grape-must syrup/grape molasses)
2 Tbsp mild-flavored mustard

for the sauce
200 ml chicken stock
2 Tbsp petimezi
½ Tbsp balsamic vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper
1½ Tbsp unsalted butter

Special equipment: large baking pan (preferably suitable also for the stovetop), pastry brush, meat thermometer, sieve


Preparation
Take the pork out of the fridge at least half an hour before cooking so it can come to room temperature.

Preheat your oven to 190ºC.

Arrange the orange and lemon slices in a baking pan in one layer. Place wider slices in the center so the pork can sit on them comfortably. Add the half garlic heads between the citrus slices. Arrange the whole sprigs of rosemary, sage and thyme mainly in the middle of the pan.

Prepare the glaze by whisking the petimezi and mustard in a small bowl to combine.

Rinse the pork and pat it dry with paper towels. Rub it well all over with 3 Tbps olive oil and season it well all over with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Transfer it to the middle of the pan (fat-side up), on top of the citrus slices and fresh herbs and using a pastry brush, brush the top and sides with some of the glaze (see photo). Drizzle the remaining 3 Tbps of olive oil over the citrus fruits around the pan and pour in also the water.

Place the pan on the low rack of your preheated oven and roast for 20 minutes. Take it out and glaze the pork with the glaze mixture using the pastry brush. Make sure to be very gentle so you don’t remove the previous layer of glaze.
Roast for a further 20 minutes on the low rack of the oven. During roasting, check if the pan is dry and if so, add a little more water.
Take the pan out and glaze the pork for the last time with the glaze mixture, being gentle again with the brush. Place the pan on the middle rack of the oven this time and roast the pork for a further 20 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted in the middle of the loin reads 65ºC.

Take the pan out of the oven and remove the pork from the pan and onto a board. The temperature of the pork will continue to rise while resting, a couple of degrees. You can cover it very loosely with aluminum foil if you wish to keep it warm.

While the pork rests, prepare the sauce. Remove the garlic and herbs from the pan. Press the orange and lemon slices through a sieve to get their juice, letting it fall into the pan. Discard the citrus slices.
Place the baking pan on the stovetop over medium heat and pour in the chicken stock. Using a wooden spoon, deglaze the pan. Take it off the heat and pour the liquid through a sieve and into a small saucepan.

Note: In case your baking pan/dish can't be put on the stovetop (for example, clay pots may break when put on direct heat), add the chicken stock to the pan and return pan to the oven (which you have kept at 190ºC) for 5-10 minutes or until the stock starts to simmer. Remove pan from the oven and deglaze, using a wooden spoon. Continue with the recipe instructions as described above.

To the saucepan, add the petimezi and balsamic vinegar as well as a little black pepper, set over medium-high heat and let it simmer and reduce by a third. Don’t let it get syrupy, it needs to be on the thin side. Add the butter and whisk it in. Check the seasoning and add salt if you think it needs it. Don’t add salt in the beginning because the flavor of the sauce concentrates as it cooks down so it may be too salty.

To serve, cut off and discard the twine from the pork carefully so you don't remove the crust and discard it. Place the pork on a platter and drizzle it with a little olive oil. Pour the sauce in a small container with a spout so you can add as much or as little as you wish. Slice the pork and pour the sauce over it.
Serve with the garlic and herbs.

Enjoy!

Pumpkin soup with parsnip, crème fraîche and walnuts

I never used to think much of pumpkins. Traditionally, in Greece, we use pumpkin as a filling in a sweet pumpkin pie made with phyllo (kolokythopita / κολοκυθόπιτα), but other than that, I never thought they could be used in anything else; I considered them more ornamental rather than edible.

Since relocating to the Netherlands, I’ve found more uses for pumpkin, with my favorite one being in soups. I love their earthy and sweet flavor plus they make the smoothest, prettiest-colored soups.

The other day, purely by chance, I came across a variety of pumpkin named Muscade (or Musquée) originating from the Provence region of France (you must have realized by now how much the Dutch love French products and food ingredients, and fortunately they can be found in abundance here).

It was beautiful and when I cut it open, the most unexpected pinkish-orange color made its appearance and an intoxicating aroma of sweet, ripe melon came over me. I got so carried away that I decided to cut a piece and eat it right then and there. Well, I should’ve known better, pumpkins are not meant to be eaten raw. I immediately started preparing it to make the soup. Apart from pretty, the pumpkin was also huge. It weighed around four and a half kilos so I ended up making three batches of this soup with a single pumpkin!

The flavor did not disappoint either; it was wonderfully sweet, earthy and nutty, and along with the parsnips, shallots and garlic, it made a very tasty and unassuming soup, elegant in both flavor and appearance. It was silky smooth, not very thick, crunchy from the walnuts with a pleasant acidity given by the crème fraîche.

It may be the ideal dish to serve as a starter during a holiday dinner since it’s quite light, with a mild flavor, and can be easily followed by meat, poultry or fish dishes. It is also perfect for those in-between-the-holidays days when you don’t know what to cook or you’re not in the mood to stay too long in the kitchen and are in need for something soothing. For whichever occasion you choose to make it, I hope you enjoy it!

You may also want to take a look at this pumpkin soup I made last year which is equally delicious.

I hope you all have a Merry Christmas with good food and good company!

Pumpkin soup with parsnip, crème fraîche and walnuts
Slightly adapted from A kitchen in France by Mimi Thorisson

If you can’t find the variety of French pumpkin I used (Muscat / Muscade or Musquée de Provence), choose a similar one.

In Greece, parsnips are difficult to find, so if you can’t source them where you live, substitute half the amount with potato and the other half with carrot.

Yield: 4 as a main / 6 as a starter

Ingredients
4 Tbsp olive oil
6 shallots, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, sliced
1½ kg (about 650 g net weight) Muscat pumpkin, peeled and roughly chopped
200 g parsnips, peeled and chopped smaller than the pumpkin because they are tougher
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper (if you don’t want the specks, use white pepper)
300 ml vegetable stock (or 300 ml water + 1 stock cube)
470 ml fresh whole milk

to serve
150 g crème fraîche
60 g walnuts, chopped roughly
A small bunch of fresh chives, finely chopped

Special equipment: immersion or regular blender


Preparation
In a large, heavy-bottomed pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil starts to shimmer, add the shallots and sauté for 6-7 minutes, until soft and golden, stirring continuously and regulating the heat so they don’t catch. Add garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes.

Add chopped pumpkin and parsnips and sauté over medium heat for about 5 minutes. (If using stock cube, add it together with the vegetables).
Season with a little salt and pepper, and add vegetable stock (or water in case you’re using a stock cube) and milk. Bring to the boil over high heat, cover the pan with the lid and turn heat down to low.
Simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the vegetables have softened. When the soup is ready, the milk may look split. Don’t worry about it, it will all come together once you blend it.

Remove from the heat, let soup cool for a while and then, if you’re using an immersion blender, blend the vegetables in the pan until smooth and creamy. If you have a regular blender, transfer the vegetables little by little to it and blend until you have a smooth and creamy soup. Return soup to the pan, give it a taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.

Serve in individual deep plates with a dollop of crème fraîche, a few walnuts and a sprinkle of chives.

The soup keeps perfectly in the fridge for a couple of days and in the freezer for 1 month, in an airtight container.