Sweet-and-sour Figs And Roast Chicken: Ben Lippett’s Savoury Fig Recipes

There are a fistful of moments connected nan culinary almanac that consciousness for illustration striking gold: rhubarb successful January, peas and wide beans successful spring, summertime cherries and tomatoes, and, for conscionable a fewer short weeks successful late-summer, figs. Typically, they mightiness beryllium torn complete yoghurt and granola for meal aliases baked into a tart pinch frangipane, but they beryllium successful nan savoury kitchen, too. Combined pinch salt, savoury ingredients and a small vinegar, a bully fig will bring a gorgeous sweet-sour statement to your meal table.

Polenta pinch sweet-and-sour figs and pecorino

As nan warmer months travel to an end, I for illustration to navigator pinch some comfortableness and freshness successful mind. Rich, buttery, warming polenta is offset pinch a vibrant, bright, jammy topping of onions, rosemary and torn figs. Shave complete immoderate pecorino for a funky, savoury twang, and you’ve sewage a crockery that’ll scratch that late-summer itch.

Prep 15 min
Cook 45 min
Serves 4

For nan polenta
250ml full milk
150g coarse cornmeal
30g butterFor nan sweet-and-sour figs
Olive oil
2 reddish onions, peeled and thinly sliced
10g rosemary (2-3 sprigs), leaves stripped and finely chopped
Sea brackish and achromatic pepper
20g brownish sugar
20ml aged balsamic vinegar
6-8 ripe figs
Pecorino romano, to serve

Put 600ml h2o and nan beverage successful a pan, past whisk successful nan cornmeal. Set nan cookware complete a mean power and bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Turn down nan power to debased and fto it tick over, stirring each now and past – if things commencement to get a spot excessively thick, adhd a scatter of h2o to loosen. You don’t request to guidelines location whisking distant nan full time; conscionable cheque successful connected nan polenta each 5 to 10 minutes, and springiness it a bully stir.

Meanwhile, group a frying cookware connected a mean power and adhd a changeable of oliva oil. Add nan onions, half nan rosemary and a pinch of salt, past flip successful nan lukewarm lipid and navigator for 10-12 minutes, aliases until nan onions are starting to caramelise. Add nan sweetener and vinegar, and proceed cooking until nan onions are jammy. Tear nan figs successful half, driblet them into nan pan, operation to coat, and decorativeness pinch nan remaining rosemary.

Once nan polenta has had 45 minutes aliases truthful successful nan pan, whisk successful nan butter. This is nan infinitesimal to set nan texture; I for illustration my polenta mildly to relax into nan bowl. If it’s excessively thick, adhd a small h2o aliases milk; if it’s excessively thin, support cooking. Spoon nan polenta into lukewarm bowls and apical pinch nan jammy onions. Use a mandoline aliases food grater to shave immoderate pecorino complete nan apical and serve.

Roast chickenhearted legs pinch beans and figs

Ben Lippett’s roast chickenhearted legs pinch beans and figs. Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food styling: Lucy Turnbull. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins. Food styling assistant: Catarina Cardoso.

A chickenhearted limb is, for my money, nan eventual midweek ingredient. With very small effort, it really sings and tin beryllium cooked pinch small hands-on time. This traybake uses somewhat under-ripe figs, orange, fennel seeds and capers to create a chickenhearted and legume crockery that’ll alert into your play rotation. When retired of season, switch nan figs for dried consequence specified arsenic apricots, dates aliases prunes.

Prep 10 min
Cook 1 hr 15 min
Serves 4

4 skin-on, bone-in chickenhearted legs
Fine oversea salt
3 onions, peeled and trim into wedges
4 tbsp capers
5 ail cloves, peeled, mildly squashed pinch a knife, but near whole
Peeled zest of 1 orange
1 tbsp fennel seeds
Olive oil
700g jar cooked achromatic beans, not drained
6-8 somewhat underripe figs
2-3 tbsp sherry vinegar
15g caller oregano
Extra-virgin oliva oil

Heat nan oven to 245C (225C fan)/480F/gas 9½, and play nan chickenhearted legs pinch salt. Put nan bulb wedges, capers, garlic, orangish zest and fennel seeds successful a roasting tin that’s conscionable large capable to clasp nan chickenhearted legs successful a azygous layer, past drizzle generously pinch oliva oil, play pinch brackish and springiness everything a bully mix. Sit nan chickenhearted legs connected top, descent into nan oven for 25 minutes, past move down nan power to 180C (160C fan)/350F/gas 4 and roast for different 25-30 minutes, aliases until nan chickenhearted is very tender.

Take nan tin retired of nan oven and assistance retired nan chickenhearted legs, leaving each nan cooking juices behind. Add nan beans and their liquid to nan tray, past trim nan figs into 1cm slices and flip them in, too. Sit nan chickenhearted backmost connected apical and return to nan oven for 10-15 minutes, until nan juices person reduced and thickened.

Take retired of nan the oven, group speech nan chickenhearted and decorativeness disconnected nan beans pinch nan orangish juice and a scatter of sherry vinegar. Scatter caller oregano complete nan apical and mingle pinch nan beans. Divide nan beans and figs betwixt 4 plates and apical pinch a roast chickenhearted leg. Drizzle pinch extra-virgin oliva lipid and serve.

• How I Cook: A Chef’s Guide to Really Good Home Cooking, by Ben Lippett, is published by HarperCollins astatine £26. To bid a transcript for £23.40, sojourn guardianbookshop.com