Serves 6
Preparation: 20 min
Marinating: 1 hour
Cooking: 45 min
MARINADE
250 ml (1 c) thick plain yoghurt
juice of 2 lemons
zest of 1 lemon, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
20 ml (4 t) ground cumin
5 ml (1 t) chilli powder
CHICKEN
8 chicken breast fillets, sliced
SAUCE
30 ml (2 T) oil
2 onions, finely chopped
1 cinnamon stick
2 cans (400 g each) chopped tomatoes
10 ml (2 t) ground ginger
10 ml (2 t) ground coriander
15 ml (1 T) paprika
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
375 ml (1½ c) chicken stock
75 ml (5 T) cold butter, cubed
24 green olives, pitted
125 ml (½ c) chopped fresh coriander
125 ml (½ c) chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper
PASTRY
18 phyllo pastry sheets, thawed
melted butter
1 egg, lightly whisked
1 Marinade: Combine the ingredients in a large non-metal bowl.
2 Chicken: Stir the chicken into the marinade, cover and chill for 1 hour.
3 Sauce: Heat the oil in a large pan, add the onions and cinnamon stick and fry over medium heat for 3 minutes or until the onions are soft.
4 Add the tomatoes, ginger, coriander, paprika, garlic and stock and simmer for 10 minutes or until the sauce has reduced and thickened slightly.
5 Stir the chicken with the marinade into the pan and cook gently for 10 minutes or until the chicken is just cooked through but still tender. Stir in the cold butter, olives, coriander and parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon into 6 single-serving baking dishes and set aside to cool.
6 Preheat the oven to 190 °C.
7 Brush butter over one pastry sheet, crumple the pastry and place on top of one of the baking dishes. Repeat, using 3 pastry sheets for each dish.
8 Brush the top with whisked egg. Bake for 20 minutes or until the pastry is crisp and golden and the filling is bubbling.
