Red chicken is my latest chicken recipe that gets requested on repeat. It's sour, savoury and spicy and has a beautiful red lemony glaze you can drizzle on at the end.
Chicken marinades can sometimes become 'samey' but I've discovered that if you focus on one element or big flavour and supplement it with a complementary base spice blend, you're onto a winner.
This red chicken recipe is a celebration of all the amazing red spices like paprika, sumac and cayenne pepper, lifted by zingy lemon.
I've also recently updated my shish tawook recipe, the classic that always pleases.
You really should check out the chicken section on the blog there are some hidden treasures like my chicken with pomegranate molasses and coriander chicken!
Ingredients
You can make this with any chicken cuts but I prefer to get a whole chicken and ask my butcher to chop it into 8 sections.
I prefer to keep the chicken skin on as it prevents the chicken from drying out and you can rub lots of marinade on underneath.
If you want to think about the marinade elements in groups, look at it this way:
- Sumac, paprika and cayenne (or red chilli powder) for the main spices
- Turmeric, garlic, black pepper, chilli flakes and 7 spice for the supplementary spices
- Salt, mild olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice to bring it all together
Ideally you will marinade this overnight or at least 4 hours.
Instructions
My preferred method is to roast the chicken and then at the end make a quick glaze (lemon juice, olive oil, main spices) to baste the chicken with.
This will make it extra juicy and delicious as well as giving you that gorgeous shine.
- Step 1: Wash and prepare your chicken
- Step 2: Add the spices, salt and oil to a bowl, mix well
- Step 3: Rub the marinade in well and lay on a baking tray or pan
- Step 4: Cook on high heat for first 15 mins then low for 1 hour, add glaze to finish
I find that a roast chicken is such a blessing in the house; you can make sandwiches for pack lunch the next day and even simmer the leftover bones for a quick stock.
Top Tips
You can always know if spices are good if you can smell them! If you are unsure have a quick sniff and if there is no aroma, change them.
Sumac is a ground sour berry we find wild in Lebanon and should have a reddish tint, if it is dull brown it is too old.
You can also add a tablespoon of zaatar spice blend to the glaze at the end to make a herby red chicken.
I also like to throw in a few unpeeled garlic cloves with the chicken marinade which come out soft and caramalized at the end for garlic lovers.
📖 Recipe
Red Chicken (Djej Muhammar)
Sumac paprika cayenne spiced chicken with lemony glaze
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken cut into 8
For the marinade
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon sumac
- ½ teaspoon cayenne red chilli powder
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon 7 spice
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon chilli flakes
- drizzle mild olive oil or vegetable oil
- ½ teaspoon salt apprix
For the glaze
- 3 tablespoon mild olive oil
- ½ lemon
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon sumac
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne
- pinch of salt
Instructions
-
Add the marinade spices to a bowl with a good drizzle of mild olive oil and salt, mix well and rub into the washed chicken
-
Cover and leave to marinade in the fridge ideally overnight or 4 hours minimum
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When you are ready to cook the chicken, take it out of the fridge before half an hour and assemble onto a baking tray. Preheat the oven to 220°C (430°F)
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Roast the chicken for 15 minutes on high heat then lower to 180°C (350F) for the next hour, turning the chicken every 15 minutes or so
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15 minutes before the end, make the glaze by mixing mild olive oil, lemon, salt and the paprika, sumac and cayenne
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Drizzle on most of the glaze for the remaining 15 minutes and a little at the end when you turn off the heat
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Serve with rice, flatbreads or potatoes
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Check out our Youtube page for full video tutorials, our Facebook group to discuss Lebanese cooking, as well as our tiktok page for quick tips.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite salads to serve with this dish:
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