Millet Pilaf with Turkey & Apricots

📝 Ingredients

• 280 g hulled millet
• 480 g turkey escalopes (4 escalopes of about 120 g each)
• 80 g dried apricots (about 10)
• 1 large brown onion (about 150 g) + 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp olive oil (1 for the millet, 1 for the turkey)
• 1 chicken stock cube + 700 ml hot water
• 1 tsp ground cumin + ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ bunch flat-leaf parsley (about 20 g)
• ½ lemon (juice)
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Sauté pan with lid
• Non-stick frying pan
• Fine sieve
• Chopping board and knife
• Fork

📖 Steps

1. Rinse the millet in a fine sieve under cold water, rubbing it between your fingers, until the water runs clear: this removes its bitterness. Drain well. Dissolve the stock cube in 700 ml of hot water.
2. Peel and finely slice the onion, then chop the garlic. Cut the dried apricots into 1 cm dice, wetting the knife blade from time to time so they don't stick.
3. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in the sauté pan over a medium heat. Fry the onion for 5 min, stirring, until translucent but not browned. Add the garlic, cumin and cinnamon, then stir for 30 seconds, until the spices are fragrant.
4. Add the drained millet and toast it for 3 min, stirring constantly: the grains should dry out, crackle slightly and smell nutty. Don't let them brown, or the pilaf will taste bitter.
5. Pour in the hot stock, add the apricots and a small pinch of salt (the stock is already salted). Bring to the boil, cover, then cook for 20 min over a low heat without lifting the lid, until all the liquid has been absorbed.
6. Meanwhile, cut the turkey escalopes into strips about 1 cm wide and 5 cm long, then wash, dry and finely chop the parsley. When the liquid has been absorbed, take the sauté pan off the heat and leave to stand for 10 min, covered: the millet finishes swelling.
7. While it rests, heat the remaining oil in the frying pan over a high heat. Sear the turkey for 4 to 5 min in a single layer, turning halfway through, until golden and white all the way through. Work in two batches if the pan is small, otherwise the meat will stew instead of browning.
8. Off the heat, season the turkey with salt and pepper and drizzle with the lemon juice. Fluff up the millet with a fork, stir in half the parsley, then serve topped with the turkey strips and the remaining parsley.