Sirocco: Limbu Chicken with Amchur Cream
Make it the LXV way
Spice blend
Sirocco Spice Blend
Wine pairing
2023 Blanc De Franc
100% Cabernet Franc. A rare white expression of the Cabernet Franc grape — tropical, textured, and utterly unique.
Wine pairing
2024 The Jewel
93% Sangiovese, 7% Petit Verdot from Central Coast AVA. 396 cases produced. A vibrant expression of Sangiovese with bold red fruit, spice, and a finish that transports you to an evening in Havana.
Limbu is lime, and this dish stacks three kinds of sour on top of each other — fresh lime, the sumac and amchur in the Sirocco blend, and a finishing squeeze — held together by just enough cream to keep it from being shrill. Nutritional yeast in the blend adds a savory backbone that stops the whole thing reading as a salad dressing. Citrus-bright and light-bodied, it wants the 2023 Blanc de Franc, or The Jewel for a rounder, more textural pour.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless chicken thighs, in large pieces
- 1 1/2 tbsp LXV Sirocco Spice Blend, divided
- 1 tsp fine sea salt, plus more to taste
- 3 tbsp ghee or butter
- 1 yellow onion, finely diced
- 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
- 2 green chilies, slit
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 3/4 cup chicken stock
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- Zest and juice of 2 limes, kept separate
- 1/2 tsp amchur (dry mango powder), if you want it sharper still
- 1/4 cup cilantro, plus mint leaves to finish
- Cracked black pepper
Method
- Toss the chicken with 1 tbsp of the LXV Sirocco Spice Blend and the salt. Rest 15 minutes at room temperature.
- Heat the ghee in a wide skillet over medium-high. Sear the chicken in a single layer, 3 minutes per side, until golden but not cooked through. Move to a plate.
- Lower the heat to medium. Cook the onion in the remaining fat 6 minutes until soft, scraping up the browned bits.
- Add the ginger-garlic paste, green chilies, turmeric and the remaining 1/2 tbsp Sirocco blend. Toast 45 seconds — the sumac will smell almost like citrus peel.
- Pour in the stock and simmer 3 minutes, then return the chicken and its juices. Cover and cook 10-12 minutes until the chicken is done and the sauce has reduced by a third.
- Stir in the cream and the lime zest and simmer 3 minutes uncovered.
- Take the pan off the heat before adding the lime juice — added over heat it turns bitter. Taste, then add the amchur if you want more edge.
- Finish with cilantro, torn mint and plenty of cracked pepper. Serve with rice or flatbread.
More like this
https://www.lxvwine.com/recipes/sirocco-limbu-chicken-with-amchur-cream/ · LXV Wine, Paso Robles