bonappetit5.0
Joojeh Kebab
A take on Persian joojeh kebabs, these grilled saffron yogurt chicken thighs with herby labneh are vibrant, flavorful, and perfect for your next cookout.
👥 4 Servings👤 Samin Nosrat📖 bonappetit
🥘 Ingredients
Check off ingredients as you prepare them:
🍳 Cookware
- ●bowl
- ●whisk
- ●baking sheet
📝 Preparation Steps
1
Labneh
2
Whisk 1 garlic clove, finely grated, 1½ cups labneh (Lebanese strained yogurt) or plain whole-milk Greek yogurt, ¼ cup finely chopped mixed tender herbs (such as parsley, dill, and/or cilantro), and ½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt in a small bowl to combine. Taste labneh and season with more salt if needed. Do Ahead: Labneh can be made 5 days ahead. Cover and chill.
½ cups labneh (Lebanese strained yogurt) or plain whole-milk Greek yogurt1
3
Chicken and Assembly
4
Grind ½ tsp. (packed) saffron threads and a small pinch of salt in a mortar and pestle to a fine powder. (Or, if you don’t have a mortar and pestle, just finely crush saffron between your fingers before placing in a small bowl.) Add 1 Tbsp. hot water and let sit ⏱️ 10 minutes.
5
Whisk saffron mixture, 2 garlic cloves, finely grated, 1½ cups plain whole-milk yogurt, ¼ cup fresh lemon juice, 1 Tbsp. double-concentrated tomato paste, ½ tsp. freshly ground pepper, and 2 Tbsp. Diamond Crystal or 1 Tbsp. plus ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt in a small bowl. Scrape into a 1-gal. resealable plastic bag. Add 1 medium onion, thinly sliced, and 2 lb. skinless, boneless chicken thighs, halved if very large, seal bag, and squish to work marinade over chicken to coat. Place bag on a rimmed baking sheet and chill at least ⏱️ 2 hours and, preferably, up to ⏱️ 12 hours.
½ cups plain whole-milk yogurt1. double-concentrated tomato paste1 Tbsp½ tsp. (packed) saffron threads. Diamond Crystal or 1 Tbsp. plus ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt, plus more2 Tbspmedium onion, thinly sliced1. skinless, boneless chicken thighs, halved if very large2 lb
6
Remove chicken from marinade, scraping off any onion pieces; let sit at room temperature ⏱️ 1 hour before grilling.
medium onion, thinly sliced1
7
Prepare a grill for medium-high indirect heat (for a charcoal grill, bank coals on 1 side of grill; for a gas grill, leave 1 or 2 burners off). Lightly oil grate with vegetable oil. Place chicken over direct heat and grill, turning halfway through and moving to cooler side of grill if browning to quickly, until deeply browned in spots and cooked through, 10–⏱️ 15 minutes.
Vegetable oil (for grill)
8
Arrange chicken on a platter and serve with labneh and lemon wedges.
Lemon wedges (for serving)
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