Chicken thighs with date-couscous

Surprise your guests with this tender chicken thighs simmered in orange gravy. It tastes great paired with a couscous flavoured with dates and aubergine - all ingredients that complement an already not-too-heavy Nero d'Avola. - TEXT + IMAGE JOLANDE VOS

Chicken thighs with date-couscous

You will need this:

• 4 chicken thighs
• salt and pepper
• 1 tbsp butter
• oil 4 tbsp for frying
• 2 oranges
• chicken stock cube 1 piece
• large aubergine
• 8 dates
• 300 g couscous
• extra virgin 2 tbsp olive oil
• approximately 2 tbsp lemon juice

This is how you make it:

Sprinkle the chicken thighs with salt and pepper. Heat the butter and 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan and brown the chicken in about 5 minutes. Cut the peel (with a peeler) from half an orange and cut it into very thin strips. Squeeze the oranges. Add the strips of zest, the orange juice, 2 decilitres of water and half the stock cube to the chicken and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer the chicken, covered, for about 15 minutes until almost done.

Dice the aubergine. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan and fry the diced aubergine, stirring, for about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Cut the dates into pieces. Spoon them through the aubergine and fry for a few minutes.

Bring 300 millilitres of water to the boil and dissolve the other half of the stock cube in it. Pour the stock onto the couscous and leave to soak for about 5 minutes. Spoon in the aubergine and dates and season with olive oil and lemon juice.

Heat the chicken for about 5 more minutes without a lid on high heat, so that the sauce boils down a little. Place the chicken on the couscous and pour the gravy on top. Delicious with a salad of rocket with toasted pine or pumpkin seeds.

Curious about more recipes combined with Nero d'avola? You can read them in WINELIFE Magazine 76. Order individual issues here!

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