Cardamom, ginger and saffron are aromatics that lend great flavour to anything they frequent. But while ginger and cardamom are modest in price, saffron is one of the most expensive ingredients known to us. Why?
The saffron threads come from the stigmas of small purple crocuses that are mainly grown in countries that band around the Mediterranean.
The intensity of labour in extracting the saffron is huge: to get one kilo requires picking these stigmas from an average of 150,000 flowers.
That’s a whole lot of handpicking to be done: back-breaking work indeed.
The dried threads can then be graded according to quality and are sold for exorbitant sums. The pinch of saffron used for this recipe costs about €2.
Yet it’s a flavour I can actually live without – unlike garlic (though regular readers may have noticed this).
Along with goat’s cheese, beetroot and coriander, it’s a flavour you begin to like more as an adult than as a young person. It’s kind of leathery and musky, which are odd flavours to desire.
However, when combined with some of my other favourite spices, it holds up pretty well and creates a really well-rounded flavour – exactly as it does in this chicken dish. which works a treat as casual, fun, party food.
Cardamom is a member of the ginger family and you can buy it dried and ready to use or else encased in little green pods that are squidgy and delicious, especially with chocolate and coffee flavours.
The carrot salad here is a great example of how simple flavours can have a maximum impact.
If you used thick slices of carrot, this would be a wretched salad. But when you take the time to grate them properly, you get the full impact of sweet and sharp.
By grating the carrots finely, you create much more surface area for the dressing to cling to and so you end up with a lovely, light salad.
Carrots are rich in antioxidants, vitamins and dietary fibre and are an exceptionally good source of vitamin A, which means you’ve got natural antioxidants and a vitamin which supports good eyesight.
As usual, I maintain that you don’t need to eat the chicken skin, so do get the thighs skinless and boneless: they are faster to cook than if the bone was still present.
These would be delicious cooked over charcoal, but were just as good cooked on a chargrill pan. This is perfect food for serving on large platter and letting folks dig in.
dkemp@irishtimes.com
