Chicken malawach with yoghurt

This is a bit of a hybrid recipe, based on a Yemini malawach (flatbread) dough, that Ben Devlin of Pipit restaurant has made a few times for a staff meal. Filling it with seasoned chicken makes for a more substantial meal.

Chicken malawach with yoghurt Credit: Kitti Gould

• serves

  2

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  15 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 180 g plain flour
• 60 g wholemeal flour
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 2 peppercorns
• ½ cinnamon stick
• 1 clove
• 1 cardamom pod
• canola oil, for cooking
• ½ small onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 green chilli, finely chopped
• 5 g ginger, minced
• 250 g chicken mince
• 2 tbsp thick Greek yoghurt, plus extra to serve
• 60 g butter, softened to room temperature, plus extra for greasing
• 3 mint leaves, finely chopped
• 5 sprig coriander leaves, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds, to garnish
• finely shredded mint, to garnish

Resting time: 15 minutes

Instructions

1. Combine the plain and wholemeal flour in a bowl, add 125 ml (½ cup) water and knead for about 3 - 4 minutes or until the dough comes together. Cover the dough with a cloth and set aside to rest for 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, place the cumin, pepper, cinnamon, clove and cardamon into a mortar and pestle or grinder and grind to a powder.
3. Heat a good drizzle of oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and stir until softened, then add the garlic, chilli and ginger and cook until starting to caramelise. Add the ground spices and stir for 10 seconds or until fragrant, then add the chicken mince. Stir for a couple of minutes, then stir in 2 tablespoons of yoghurt. Bring to the boil, then spread the mixture out over a tray and place it in the refrigerator to cool down as quickly as possible.
4. Divide the dough in half. Use a small amount of butter to grease the bench you intend to work on. Using a rolling pin, roll out one piece of dough into a rectangle as thinly as possible, carefully pulling the edges to finish it off. Ideally, the dough should be thin enough to see through in areas – a few tears are okay but try not to tear it too much.
5. Spread a thin layer of butter over the dough. Place a 2 cm wide strip of chicken mixture along one long edge of the rectangle. Sprinkle the chopped herbs all over the dough, then pull the long edge of dough over the line of chicken and press it to the middle of the dough rectangle, roll it all up into a log, then twist the log into a snail, tuck the end of the log under the edge. Press the circle lightly to seal it. Repeat with remaining dough and chicken (any chicken that does not fit in the dough can be served along with the cooked pastries). 
6. Heat a frying pan with a little canola oil and a knob of butter, add in the dough circles and caramelise well on the bottom, then flip them over and caramelise well on the other side. Serve with a dollop of yoghurt, a sprinkling of sesame seeds and a little shredded mint.

 

Photography by Kitti Gould.

Want more from The Cook Up?

• Stream free here at SBS On Demand.

• Get the show recipes, articles and more here.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.