If you haven’t tried my Mediterranean Chicken Pilaf, you’re missing out on a great dinner-time favourite – for both friends and family –
https://eatingforireland.com/recipe/mediterranean-chicken-pilaf/.But here’s another All-in-one Chicken recipe – perfect for easy entertaining, and more than suitable for a family dinner too. It’s based on one of Ottolenghi’s that I read in the paper recently. I’ve exchanged Bulgar wheat for the split peas in his recipe, simply because I like Bulgar wheat; I’ve also used Chicken Supremes, because I prefer them to chicken legs too
– I know, it’s all about me, right? – Just give it a go and see how you get on – we can always go crawling back to himself if it goes pear-shaped.. (but it won’t!)
EQUIPMENT:
- A large lasagne or roasting tin – big enough to fit the chicken portions comfortably
- Sieve
- Pestle and mortar
- frying pan
- Large bowl
- Tin foil.
- Small bowl
- pastry brush, or a piece of scrunched-up kitchen roll
INGREDIENTS: This recipe is for 4 people, but to feed more all you have to do is add a chicken portion per person, and up the quantities of the other ingredients slightly..
- 4 Chicken Supremes, skin on.
- 1 big juicy orange, quartered
- 1 whole garlic clove, cut in half through the equator
- 1 large mild green chili, finely chopped (leave the seeds in if you’re looking for some heat)
- 4-6 Banana shallots, peeled and cut in two longways.
- 1 tsp chipotle chilli flakes
- 2 tsp coriander seeds
- 2 tsp cumin seeds
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil – plus a further tablespoon in a small bowl
- 1 tablespoon of maple syrup – plus a further tablespoon in the same bowl as the extra oil
- Salt
- 750ml chicken stock
- 200g Bulgar Wheat – well rinsed, see NOTES
- 1 Tablespoon of Lime juice
- 1-2 tablespoons of Coriander, roughly chopped
METHOD:
- Rinse the Bulgar. See NOTES
- Heat the oven to 180 fan
- Dry-fry the Coriander and Cumin seeds until they’re fragrant, then tip them into a pestle and roughly crunch them up – then tip them into a large bowl
- Add the oil, maple syrup , orange pieces, green chilli, Chipotle chilli flakes, chicken, shallots, garlic and some salt and pepper to the bowl and mix it up well with your hands.
Adding the crushed coriander and cumin seeds
Adding the maple Syrup to the marinade
Shallots, garlic, chicken.. all the marinade ingredients
- You can prepare the dish as far ahead as this and keep it, well covered, in the fridge for a couple of hours..
- Drain the Bulgar and spread it around the bottom of the Lasagne dish.
- Add the hot Chicken stock.
- Gently tip the contents of the bowl, including the marinade, into the baking dish on top of the Bulgar and stock. Spread it around evenly.
Cover with foil, then it’s ready for the oven.
- Make sure the Chicken is skin-side UP.
- Cover with a sheet of tinfoil and give it an hour in the oven at 180 fan.
- After the hour, take off the foil, and give the whole thing a gentle stir.
- Mix the reserved Oil and maple Syrup together, then paint the chicken generously with it.
- Put the whole dish back into the oven for a further 20-30 minutes until the skin on the chicken is browned and crispy, and the Bulgar is cooked. (you’ll need to taste the Bulgar)
- Remove the garlic cloves (when they’ve cooled a little) and squeeze the cooked pulp out over the dish and mix in gently. Discard the shells.
- Taste for seasoning (I sprinkled over some Maldon sea salt)
- Squeeze the lime juice over, and serve garnished with a generous sprinkle of chopped fresh Coriander.
NOTES:
- Don’t rinse the Bulgar until shortly before you’re ready to cook it. To rinse – just measure the Bulgar into the sieve and place it over a suitable-sized bowl. Let the cold tap water run over it, shaking well, until the bowl is full. Shake the Bulgar a few more times while it’s soaking, then run fresh water through it, and drain well before you transfer it to the baking dish.
- The flavour of the roasted orange goes very well with the Coriander in the marinade.
- I initially made this just for me and Mr Saturday Night, so here are the quantities I used: 2 chicken Supremes, 100g Bulgar, 4 shallots, 1 small orange (as you can see I only had a Blood Orange), 1 teaspoon of the toasted coriander/cumin mix, small bulb of garlic, cut in two, 500mls hot Chicken stock. I’d say 50g of Bulgar per person is a good portion size.
- I think that this dish would be great with skin-on and bone-in Chicken thighs for a big crowd.
- You could also use just individual cloves of garlic, then squeeze the cooked flesh out as before.
