Spicy Peruvian Poussin with Chimichurri Vegetables

This is a typical Sunday night meal at 'Chez Jules'. Food you can scoff whilst watching a movie may sound a little slobbish...but you know? I don't care. This is what we do and this is what we eat.

Two poussins and many, many ideas led to me literally asking The Bloke...what cuisine?? He thought for a moment and then decided on Peruvian. Okay - not a problem. So the poussins (little chickens) were given a good Peruvian spiced butter under the skin. The veg had its own Chimichurri sauce to be tossed in and the potatoes were simply cut smaller than usual and roasted. The parsley, I have to say, I am lucky enough to have loads of in the garden so it was a relatively easy Chimichurri sauce for the green beans and asparagus tips.

And the dipping sauce? A chilli sauce I made earlier that day. And it was ALL worth it. Wow.

Ingredients

For the poussins:

2 poussins
1 tbsp. paprika
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. chilli powder
1/4 tsp. each salt & pepper
25g butter, softened

Use a pair of scissors to cut through the backbone of the poussins. Press flat and then gently put your fingertips under the skin on the breasts (from the leg end - not the wing end). Gently, without breaking the skin, pull the skin away from the breast to create a good pocket for the spicy butter. Put both birds on a baking tray to one side.

Mix the spices and butter together and put 2/3 of it under the skins pockets you have made on both. Rub the remainder over the birds, including the legs. Cook at 200 C for 30 mins, or until cooked through (cut though a little piece of the leg - it should be perfect).

For the Chimichurri veg:

25g flat leaf parsley
4 cloves garlic
2 tsp. dried oregano
pinch chilli flakes
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
salt & pepper

3/4 cup olive oil
Veg of choice

Put all of the ingredients apart from the oil and veg, into a food processor and blend until a paste. Add the oil in two or three lots to emulsify. Steam any greens you like and toss in some of the sauce. I used green beans and asparagus but you choose!

For the Chilli Sauce I used this recipe here and blended well with a stick blender to create a smooth sauce.... But instead of my usual chipotles I used a some different chillies that I had picked up from Borough Market in London (see photo below). You can use any dried chilles you like - just follow the recipe and boil the dried chillies that you like.

To serve, just put the chili sauce in a ramekin, the remainder of the Chimichurri in another, the birds on a wooden board and lots of napkins! Enjoy!

Rustic Sausage and Apple Loaf

This is a variation on the old Sausage Plait I used to make occasionally. I decided this time to add some apple to the pork mix. It’s a lovely recipe with loads of flavour, which you can either have hot with chips and a salad, or chilled with pickles. Or sliced with a picnic. Delicious either way!

 

Ingredients:

400g sausage meat

1 tbsp. oil

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

1 small eating apple, chopped finely

1 heaped tbsp. tomato ketchup

1 tbsp. English Mustard

1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

Salt & pepper

320g ready rolled puff pastry

1 egg, beaten

 

Method:

Set the oven to 190 C. Finely chop the onion and garlic and fry with the apple in the oil on a medium heat until the onion soft. Put into a large bowl and cool. When cooled, add the sausages, ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and season with salt & pepper.

Take the pastry and place on a board in front of you, on a piece of greaseproof paper (most pastry  comes with some already with it).  Pile the sausage meat mixture lengthways down the centre, leaving a 1.5 inch frame.

Lift the shorter ends over the pastry and brush the top with beaten egg. Then lift the sides up and over the length of the pastry and pinch together, using a little egg if needed. Seal the loaf as much as you can – although you probably will get some seepage of juices sneaking out! Don’t worry, it won’t hurt the dish.

Lift the loaf gently with the greaseproof paper and gently invert it onto a greased baking sheet, so that the seam is at the bottom. Decorate the top with a sharp knife and brush with more egg.

Cook for about 30 minutes, or until golden and cooked through.