Grilled Chicken with Freekeh and a Big Herb Salad

Why it works

The yogurt marinade is doing chemistry, not just flavour. Its acidity and calcium activate enzymes in the meat that tenderize it, and the protein and lactose brown far faster than a plain oil marinade ever could, so you get a proper crust in the exact time it takes the inside to finish cooking. Freekeh is green durum wheat, harvested young and roasted, and that's where the smoke comes from, along with a protein content higher than most grains and more fiber than brown rice. The herbs are the vegetable here, used by the handful, the way Levantine cooking has always used them: parsley, mint, and dill in this quantity carry real vitamin K, folate, and polyphenols. They are not decoration. And chicken thigh over breast is deliberate. Thigh survives a night in the fridge. Breast does not.

Ingredients

• 600 g boneless chicken thighs
• 150 g plain yogurt
• 2 tsp sumac, plus more to finish
• 2 garlic cloves, grated
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 200 g freekeh
• A large bunch each of parsley, mint, and dill, roughly chopped
• 1 cucumber, diced
• 200 g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 tbsp olive oil and 2 tbsp lemon juice, for the salad

Method

1. Mix the yogurt, sumac, garlic, and cumin, coat the chicken, and leave it for at least thirty minutes or overnight in the fridge.
2. Simmer the freekeh in plenty of salted water for 20 minutes until tender with a bite, then drain well.
3. Heat a grill or griddle pan until properly hot. Wipe most of the marinade off the chicken, or it'll burn before the inside cooks, and grill for six to seven minutes a side until charred in places and cooked through.
4. Toss the herbs, cucumber, and tomatoes with the olive oil and lemon. Dress it at the last moment.
5. Rest the chicken for five minutes, slice, and serve over the freekeh with the salad and another pinch of sumac.