The Grand Tour Story
The Grand Tour stays in Beirut for another evening because, according to Samir, "one meal isn't enough to
understand Lebanon." Fair point. As darkness falls, the pavements fill with families sharing mezze, charcoal grills
glow outside tiny restaurants, and the scent of garlic, lemon and roasting chicken drifts through the warm
Mediterranean air.
We find ourselves squeezed into a tiny grill house where whole trays of marinated chicken are disappearing almost
as quickly as they're being cooked. Every plate lands with a generous spoonful of snow-white toum—that
legendary Lebanese garlic sauce that's so good people start tearing bread apart before the chicken even arrives.
Samir laughs.
"Nobody comes back for the napkins."
"They come back for the garlic."
After one bite, we knew exactly what he meant.
You’ll Need
For the Chicken
700g chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized chunks, 2 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, finely grated, Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp sea salt, ½ tsp cracked black pepper
Lebanese Toum Sauce
200g Greek yoghurt
3 cloves garlic, finely grated
1 tbsp mayonnaise, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tbsp olive oil, Pinch of sea salt
To Finish
Fresh parsley, chopped
Sumac
Lemon wedges
Optional but dangerous
Warm Lebanese flatbread
Pickled turnips
Hummus
Cold Lebanese lager
Method
Preheat your air fryer to 200°C.
In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, cumin, coriander, smoked paprika, oregano, sea salt and
black pepper.
Add the chicken and coat thoroughly. Leave to marinate for 20–30 minutes if you've got time.
Arrange the chicken in the air fryer basket in a single layer.
Air fry for 12–14 minutes, shaking halfway through, until beautifully golden with lightly charred edges and cooked
through.
Meanwhile, whisk together the Greek yoghurt, garlic, mayonnaise, lemon juice, olive oil and sea salt until smooth
and creamy.
Give the chicken a final 2-minute blast at 205°C for extra caramelisation.
Transfer the chicken to a serving platter and drizzle lightly with some of the toum.
Finish with chopped parsley, a sprinkle of sumac and fresh lemon wedges.
Serve immediately with the remaining garlic sauce, warm flatbread and pickled turnips if using.