Marinate Chicken Thighs in Saffron and Yogurt Tonight

For something that basically involves stirring and plonking, marinades are weirdly hard to get right. Too heavy-handed with the garlic or Worcestershire sauce, and your prize steak or carefully sliced tofu becomes an overpowering mess. But wimp out on spice and you just wasted an entire afternoon soaking something for no flavour pay-off.

Luckily, last time we swung by Berber & Q, London's favourite Middle Eastern mezze restaurant, we managed to wrangle the recipe for their killer saffron yogurt marinade. The one that head chef Josh Katz told us has "taken about 15 or 20 times to get it right and we still tweak it every now and then."

And, because friends don't let friends eat bland chicken, we're going to share it with you.

Katz starts by tossing chicken thighs in turmeric, pepper, garlic, lemon juice, and onion. He mixes this with the saffron yogurt (i.e. full fat yoghurt and a pinch of saffron in hot water), then refrigerates for at least four hours.

Once those thighs are good and flavoured up, it's time to grill. Katz likes his chicken cooked until slightly charred, so about 15 minutes.

For the full Berber & Q experience, serve your perfectly marinated chicken thighs in pita stuffed with pickled cucumbers and tahina sauce. You can thank us later. When you've wiped the yogurt off your chin.