Chicken In A Rich, Aromatic Tomato Sauce
By: Hani O'Keeffe
Published: Saturday, February 27, 2010 - 2:13am

Ingredients




1 whole chicken
(you can buy ready cut up chicken pieces if you prefer. Allow enough for 4-6 people).

2 mediums to large onions
2 400 gm Tins chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons Tomato puree
Halloumi or helim cheese

2 tablespoons Fresh mint or 1 tsp dried mint
1/4 teaspoon Cinnamon
5 ounces fl  (150 ml) Cooking oil
Salt and Peper 

1/2 Lemon

Preparation

1 Cut up the chicken into 8 – 10 pieces, rinse and pat dry. 2 Pour cooking oil into  large saucepan and heat on stove until hot. 3 Add chicken peices to pan in batches of three at a time. 4 Fry until golden and really crispy all over. 5 Place the fried chicken onto a plate and set aside. 6 Peel and slice the onions, add to pan and fry until dark brown in colour. 7 Add the chopped tomatoes and fry for a further five minutes. 8 Stir in tomato puree and fry for two minutes. 9 Season with salt, pepper and cinnamon. 10 Stir chicken into tomatoe sauce, bring to boil. 11 Add the squeezed lemon juice, cover pan and simmer for 45 minutes. 12 Be sure to check the sauce while it is cooking and give it a stir. 13 This will prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pan. 14 Add a little water if needed. 15 While the chicken is cooking, grate the halloumi / helim cheese into a bowl. 16 Mix in the finely chopped fresh mint or dried mint. 17 Serve chicken on a bed of pasta, topped with a generous sprinkling of grated halloumi and mint.

About


This is one of my favourite dishes, Warm, hearty and absolutely delicious. I just love the combination of the slightly sweet, cinnamon scented tomato sauce, topped with grated halloumi / helim cheese and fresh mint, served on a bed of pasta.
Lots of childhood memories of summer days playing in the garden, with Mum cooking this dish, its wonderful aroma's drifting through the kitchen window, and the gentle sounds of Melina Mercouri's Never On A Sunday playing in the background.