Make This: Sort-of Chicken Shawarma

In our house we go through committed phases of chicken consumption where we fall in love with a particular preparation and lean into that recipe again and again and again. For years our poultry slot in the weekly dinner plan was occupied by a roasted chicken recipe my wife plucked from Gwyneth Paltrow’s very good cookbook. I saved all the wishbones and keep them in a glass container atop our dining room credenza. Imagine all those unfulfilled wishes.

A common sight at our house: grilled chicken thighs

After that we went through a very passionate dalliance with grilled chicken thighs (my favorite) which I covered in the fennel-heavy spice mix from The Fly in Brooklyn. I’ve cajoled my friend Nick Perkins to sell the mix, but for now he just sends it direct when I need a refill. He’s one of a trio behind a favorite restaurant in NYC, as well as a very delicious tinned seafood brand that we keep stocked at the house.