Andi Oliver's spice-rubbed roast chicken
Andi Oliver is in the kitchen with a classic: roast chicken - but not as you know it! A fusion feast, this dish features the best of both British and Caribbean cuisine, with a spice-rubbed chicken, coated in a coconut gravy to die for, and served with meltingly delicious sweet potatoes.
Spiced roast chicken with coconut gravy
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
For the spice paste:1 heaped tsp ground turmeric1 heaped tsp ground cumin 1 heaped tsp ground coriander1 heaped tsp finely grated fresh ginger 80ml rapeseed oil 4 garlic cloves, peeled1 large or 2 small spring onion(s), roughly chopped Small handful flat-leaf parsley Small handful coriander1-2 red or green bird’s-eye chillies, to taste, roughly chopped 1 tsp sea saltTwist of freshly ground black pepper
For the roast chicken:1 x 1.5-2kg chicken 1 yellow onion, halved3 garlic cloves, peeled1 sprig of thyme
For the coconut gravy: 25g block coconut cream 400ml can coconut milk Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 130C fan/150C.
2. To make the spice paste, place all the ingredients into a food processor and blitz together. Set aside.
3. To prepare the chicken, lay the chicken in a deep roasting tray and push both halves of the onion, the garlic cloves, and the sprig of thyme into the cavity.
4. Pour the spice paste over the chicken, turning the bird a few times in the paste to ensure it is fully coated. Sprinkle with a good pinch of salt, cover the whole tray in tin foil, and pop into the preheated oven for 2 hours to 2 hours and 15 minutes, or until cooked through (internal temperature of 75C).
5. Remove the tray from the oven and take off the foil. Use a large spoon to baste the chicken with all of the lovely cooking juices, then pour most of the juices into a saucepan.
6. To crisp up the spiced skin, pop the tray back into the oven and turn the heat up to 200C fan/220C. After about 15-20 minutes the skin should be crispy - if not, roast for 5-10 minutes more until it is just right.
7. Meanwhile, make the coconut gravy: add the coconut cream to the saucepan of chicken juices, and let it melt over a medium low heat. Add the coconut milk, stir and bring to a gentle simmer.
8. When the chicken is ready, tip any remaining cooking juices into the saucepan, and reduce over a medium heat for around 7-10 minutes while the chicken rests (if it’s a little thick, add a splash of water and simmer until you are happy with the consistency). Season with salt and pepper to taste.
9. Transfer the chicken to a serving platter, decant the gravy into a jug, and serve alongside seasonal greens, and Andi’s melting white sweet potatoes (recipe below).
Melting white sweet potatoes
Serves: 4 as a side
Ingredients
2 medium white sweet potatoes 100g unsalted butter, dicedSplash of extra virgin rapeseed oil 2 garlic cloves, peeled and bashed2 red chillies, finely chopped2 sprigs of thyme 400ml stock of choiceSalt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
1. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into 3-4cm thick rounds.
2. Add two tsp of the butter and a splash of oil to a large sauté pan over a medium heat.
3. Add the sweet potato rounds and brown on both sides. Then add the garlic, chillies, thyme and sauté with the sweet potatoes for a few minutes.
4. Start adding in the stock, a ladle at a time, and gradually throw in pieces of butter every 4-5 minutes. Keep the pan simming, turning and cooking the potatoes in the stock for about 25 minutes in total, or until they are tender.
5. Finish with some salt and pepper, and serve.
Recipe taken from The Pepperpot Diaries.