Hong Kong chicken and bulgur salad: Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipes for cooking with lemon

For all the countless ingredients that are out there, the one I can’t imagine cooking without is the lemon. In fact, when asked what my desert island luxury was be a few years ago, my answer was a lemon tree. Put simply, lemons make me happy, and they make just about anything that bit more delicious. They cut through richness, and they lighten and brighten the load. So, when life gives you lemons, squeeze them, slice them, zest them, preserve them. Use them as much as you can, come rain or shine, whether you’re on a desert island or just at home.

Hong Kong-style lemon chicken (pictured top)

This will be nostalgic for anyone who automatically defaults towards this dish when ordering a Chinese takeaway. There are all sorts of variations in the way the batter and sauce are made, but this one, I find, just seems to taste better every time I make it.

Prep 30 min
Marinate 30 min
Cook 15 min
Serves 4

3-4 boneless and skinless chicken breasts (500g)
750ml vegetable oil, plus 1 tbsp extra for the pak choi
3 baby pak choi (120g), quartered lengthways

For the marinade
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp Shaoxing wine
2 tsp soy sauce
½ tsp white pepper
Fine sea salt

For the lemon sauce
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 garlic clove, peeled and smashed with the flat of a large knife
4cm piece ginger, peeled and finely sliced into strips (15g)
2 tsp Shaoxing wine
1 tsp bouillon powder, a chicken one, ideally
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp instant custard powder, or milk powder
2 lemons, halved – zest finely grated to get 1½ tsp, juiced to get 45ml lemon juice, and one half-lemon thinly sliced into half-moons
1 red chilli, thinly sliced
1 tsp cornflour

For the batter
140g cornflour
2 eggs

First prepare the chicken. Cut lengthways down the thicker side of each breast, taking care not to slice all the way through, then open it out. Working one by one, put the butterflied chicken breasts between two sheets of greaseproof paper, then gently flatten with a heavy pan or rolling pin, taking care not to hit so hard that the meat tears.

Lightly score each flattened breast about 10 times on each side, then put in a large bowl. Add all the marinade ingredients and a teaspoon of salt, toss to coat and leave to marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. Put the oil in a medium frying pan on a medium-high heat and, once it’s hot, add the garlic and ginger, and cook for two minutes, until fragrant. Lift out the garlic, then pour in the Shaoxing wine and 100ml cold water.

Stir in the bouillon powder, sugar, custard powder and a half-teaspoon of salt, and cook for a minute, stirring continuously. Add three tablespoons of lemon juice, the lemon zest, sliced lemon and chilli, and cook, stirring, for 10 seconds.

Mix the cornflour with two tablespoons of water to make a slurry, then add this to the pan and stir-fry for about 30 seconds, until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. Take off the heat and set aside.

Next, make the batter. Whisk 60g cornflour with the eggs until smooth.

Dust the chicken breasts in 20g cornflour, dredge them in the batter, then coat again in the remaining 60g cornflour.

Put a tablespoon of oil in a high-sided frying pan for which you have a lid, and set it on a high heat. Lay in the pak choi cut side down, sprinkle over half a teaspoon of salt, then cover and cook for two minutes, turning once halfway through. Transfer the pak choi to a bowl and cover, so it carries on steaming and softening.

Wipe the pan clean, add 750ml vegetable oil and put it on a medium-high heat. Check the oil is hot enough by dropping in a pinch of batter – if it sizzles straight away, it’s ready. Lower in the battered chicken (depending on the size of your pan, you may have to do this in batches) and fry for four minutes, flipping each breast once halfway through. Lift out and drain on a plate lined with kitchen paper. Meanwhile, gently warm up the lemon sauce on a low heat.

Turn up the heat under the oil pan to high, wait for four minutes until it is very hot, then fry each piece of chicken a second time, for 30 seconds, until very crisp. Lift out, drain again on a kitchen paper-lined plate, then cut into 2cm-wide strips.

Transfer the chicken to plates, put some pak choi alongside, then pour over the warm lemon sauce. Finish with the remaining tablespoon of lemon juice and serve.

Parsley, lemon and cannellini bean salad

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When this recipe was first published, it was made with quinoa, rather than bulgur. Both work well, but it’s bulgur I’m craving these days, for its firmer texture and nutty flavour. This makes a great standalone lunch or a lovely side for all sorts of grilled meat and fish, or roasted root veg.

Prep 15 min
Cook 15 min
Rest 15 min
Serves 4

60ml olive oil
30g almonds, roughly chopped
100g bulgur
20g parsley leaves, finely shredded
20g mint leaves, finely shredded
50g spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced
400g tin cannellini beans, drained
½ large lemon, skin and pips removed, flesh finely chopped (70g)
½ tsp ground allspice
½ tsp ground cumin
Fine sea salt and black pepper

Put all the oil in a small saucepan on a medium heat. Once it’s hot, add the almonds and fry them for five to six minutes, until lightly coloured and fragrant. Take off the heat and leave to cool to room temperature.

Put the bulgur in a small saucepan, add 100ml cold water, then bring to a boil. Cover the pan, turn off the heat and leave to sit for 10 minutes. Lift off the lid, fluff up the bulgur with a fork, then leave to cool to room temperature.

Put the bulgur, almonds and their oil in a large bowl, then add all the remaining ingredients and a teaspoon each of salt and ground black pepper. Stir to combine, then serve.

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