Rob is her Hubbie, he's is the "tech head". They make a great team!
I've met Rob face to face, but not Melanie. I'd love to meet Melanie, she really knows her stuff!
"Taste" before you "replace". I have had jars of Preserved Lemons for over a year in the fridge, and they have been fantastic right to the very end. I have always finished the jar, and never thrown any out. I also never put a jar into the fridge unless I have opened it. Therefore, I have had unopened jars for years. Mind you, these are ones I made myself, so I know how they were made and how to store them properly.
Unfortunately, my lemons are from a friend's tree, and she is moving very soon. I have harvested some seeds, but I might be moving soon as well. So I am making a new batch right now to get me through until the future plays out. I have a fig tree too, which I will miss if I move.
Here's the recipe:
3 small skinless Chicken Thigh Fillets.
Olive Oil (of course) for frying
1/2 Brown Onion, peeled, then quartered.
2 cloves Garlic chopped
1 Tablespoon Capers.
2 Tablespoons Koroneiki Olives.
2 Anchovy Fillets, roughly chopped.
1/8 Preserved Lemon - Pith only, roughly diced.
1 Tablespoon Hot English Mustard.
1 Tablespoon Verjuice - vary according to mustard heat and to prevent "sauce" from drying out.
Start browning the Chicken, outside down, in the Olive Oil in a heavy frying pan.
When Chicken is lightly brown, add the the Olives directly to the pan.
Flip the Chicken, then add anchovy, Mustard, Capers, Garlic, and Preserved Lemon (on top of the Chicken).
(dab 1/3rd of a tblsp of mustard on each fillet)
Cook for about 3 minutes then add the Onion to the pan (i.e. not on top of the fillets.)
When Chicken is cooked, flip chicken again and stir to amalgamate then to prevent sticking add Verjuice as required. Its ready when the pieces of Anchovy have almost completely dissolved, and the Onion should be lightly wilted. i.e: Not limp!
The objective is for there to be just barely enough "sauce" to coat everything, not to have things "swimming" in sauce. Also you ideally want the onion still have a bit of "resistance" or texture (i.e - not reduced to mush).
Having said that, taste the sauce near the end, and if the mustard is too "hot", then add more verjuice to reduce heat. Bear in mind that heating the Hot English Mustard reduces the potency of the "heat", but leaves the flavour. In spite of the ingredients, this is not a hot and spicy dish. The Lemon will be the hero, but everything contributes.
Use a dry White wine if you don't have Verjuice.
Again, beware of the delicate pits inside the Koroneiki. If you crack one in your mouth, you'll probably have to rinse and spit because the little shards will ruin your mouthful.
