Directions

Prepare the chicken breasts:Pre heat oven to 350 degrees F. Pat the chicken breasts dry on paper towels. Sprinkle one side of the chicken breasts with 2-3 teaspoons za’atar spice, some kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. Turn the breasts over and repeat with more za’atar spice, salt and pepper.

Warm a sauté pan on the stovetop that is large enough to comfortably hold all the breasts. Add 2-3 tablespoons of the cooking oil and when oil is hot (‘shimmering’) but not smoking, carefully lay each breast in the pan. Don’t drop the chicken into the pan or the oil could splash up and burn you. Gently brown one side and turn the breasts over to lightly brown the second side. Cover the pan and put it into the oven to finish cooking.

Depending on the thickness of the chicken breasts, this could take 12-18 minutes. The breasts are done when they are very firm to the touch and the juices run clear (not pink) and/or a meat thermometer registers 165 degrees F when inserted into the thickest part of the breast. Remove pan from oven and remove cooked breasts to a plate to cool.

Prepare the Vegetables:

Dice the pitted olives and add 1/3 cup of the chopped olives to a large bowl. Drain and rinse the chickpeas and measure 1⁄2 cup. Add the chickpeas to the bowl. Peel a seedless or European cucumber. Cut in half, then cut into 1⁄4 inch slices and then cut the slices into 1⁄4 inch cubes. Measure 1 cup of diced cucumber and add to the bowl. Wash and dry the scallions. Separate the scallion whites and greens. Slice the greens very thinly on the diagonal.

Measure 1/3 cup and add to the bowl. (Save the scallion whites for the tahini dipping sauce.)

Prepare the yogurt tahini sauce:

Measure the yogurt into a new bowl and whisk it a bit. Add the tahini and whisk until incorporated. Start with just the four tablespoons, you can always add more to taste. (A note on the tahini: make sure it is well mixed/ emulsified before adding it to the bowl.)

Peel, chop and mash a small clove of garlic to a paste. Measure 1⁄2 teaspoon and add to the bowl. Thinly slice the scallion whites, measure two tablespoons of them and add to the bowl. Remove the stems from the mint leaves and finely chop them. Measure 2 tablespoons and add to the bowl.

Whisk all the ingredients together. Add the lemon juice. Taste the sauce. Adjust to your taste, adding more lemon juice or mint or tahini, etc. Add a pinch or two of kosher salt and some just-ground black pepper. Set aside.

To finish the salad: Cut the now-cooled chicken breasts into 1⁄2-inch strips and cut the strips across into 1⁄2 inch diced pieces. Add to the bowl with the olives, cucumbers, scallions and chickpeas. Toss with a long spatula to combine. Add the sauce...start with just half of the sauce, the recipe will no doubt make extra sauce. Toss to thoroughly combine and all the ingredients are well mixed. Taste and adjust seasonings. Add the optional toasted sesame seeds if using.

Great by itsself or on any bread, it makes an easy wrap with lettuce.