History

Lebanese immigration to Sydney from the 1970s built the country's charcoal chicken culture. El Jannah on South Street, Granville (founded 1998) defined the modern Sydney format: whole chicken cooked over charcoal, served with house garlic toum (a fluffy whipped garlic-and-oil emulsion), thin chips and pickled turnip. The format spread across western Sydney and into the eastern suburbs through Charcoal Charlies, Charcoal Chicken Co and dozens of family-run shops. The whole bird with a tub of toum is now the canonical Sydney family takeaway.

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Common allergens: Dairy (some toum recipes)

Make it at home

Yield 4Hands-on 30 minTotal 2 hrDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

  • 1 whole free-range chicken (1.6-1.8 kg), butterflied
  • Marinade: 4 tbsp olive oil
  • juice of 2 lemons
  • 4 garlic cloves crushed
  • 1 tbsp sumac
  • 1 tbsp dried oregano
  • 1 tbsp salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • Toum: 1 cup peeled garlic cloves, 1 tsp salt, 2 tbsp lemon juice, 2 cups neutral oil
  • To serve: 4 Lebanese flat breads, 8 thin-cut chips, pickled turnip, fresh parsley

Method

  1. Whisk all the marinade ingredients in a bowl. Rub the butterflied chicken all over with the marinade and rest in the fridge for at least 4 hours (or overnight).
  2. Make the toum: pulse the garlic and salt in a food processor until pasty. With the motor running, drizzle in the oil very slowly in a thin stream, alternating with teaspoons of lemon juice, until the mixture is light, fluffy and white (about 12 minutes total).
  3. Heat a charcoal barbecue (or oven grill at 220 degrees Celsius). Place the chicken skin-side down over the charcoal (or under the grill) and cook for 25-30 minutes, turning halfway, until the skin is deeply charred and the meat is cooked through (internal 75 degrees Celsius).
  4. Rest the chicken for 10 minutes.
  5. Carve into quarters; serve with a tub of toum, Lebanese bread, thin chips and pickled turnip.
  6. Eat: tear the bread, pile chicken, drizzle toum, top with parsley, eat with hands.

Tip from the editors. Toum needs patience: drizzle oil slowly to whip up; rescue a split toum by beating in 1 tsp cold water.

Where to eat sydney charcoal chicken with toum

Sydney Charcoal Chicken with Toum in Sydney

El Jannah ★ 4.8

$ Street foodGranville

Sydney's canonical charcoal chicken on South Street, Granville. Whole chickens, garlic toum, chips and pickled turnip; open daily 10am till late.

TryCharcoal chicken and toum

Directions

Jasmin Lebanese Restaurant ★ 4.2

$$ LebaneseLakemba

Long-running Lebanese family-run restaurant on Haldon Street, Lakemba, Sydney. Mezze, mixed grills, halal-certified, generous family-style service.

OrderMixed grill platter for the table and the hummus.

TipCash-friendly; the Ramadan late-night service is famous in Sydney.

Directions

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