Chicken ready to go into the oven
This is a recipe which I adapted from BBC Good Food Magazine, April 2017 issue. The original recipe is for Pot-Roast Bombay Chicken. I have changed it quite a bit, so give you my version below. My main changes were to add more vegetables for extra goodness, and to make my own spice paste. I also add Greek yoghurt, as I am addicted to it!
Serves about 4 People
1 Chicken weighing about 1.5kg or 3lbs
2 cloves garlic
2 fresh red chillis
small piece of ginger
2 tsp fennel seeds
2 tsp spice mix such as garam masala
2 tsp turmeric
1 tab fenugreek seeds
6 tabs full-fat Greek Yoghurt
4 tabs sunflower or other oil (not extra virgin olive oil)
2 onions – I used one red and one ordinary – cut into big chunks
3 carrots – cut into large chunks or slices
750g new potatoes – halved or cut into chunky slices
Half a cauliflower – broken into big florets
100g spinach
About 6 medium tomatoes – quartered
Fresh coriander – a handful
4 tabs dessicated coconut or a can of coconut milk
Method
You need a large roasting tin or a big casserole which will hold all your ingrdients with the vegetables around the chicken. Sear your vegetables in the hot tin/dish. Add the fenugreek seeds and some grated ginger. Meanwhile make a spice paste with the all of the spices apart from the fenugreek and just half of the ginger. I put them into a mini blender with 2 tabs yogurt and 2 tabs oil and blitz into a paste. Smear half of this over the chicken. Boil some water and soak the coconut in about half a pint of water.
Remove the vegetables from the pan and sear the chicken on its own until nicely browned on both sides. Add the rest of the spice paste and put the vegetables back in the pan. Strain the coconut liquid over the vegetables and chicken, or pour in a can of cooconut milk. Season well with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add the rest of the yoghurt and mix in. Add the tomatoes. Cook this uncovered in the oven at 200 degrees for 20 minutes, then lower the heat to 180 degrees and cook for a further hour or so, basting occasionally. Check that the chicken is cooked by pulling a leg to see that it comes away easily.
Add the spinach to the tin and stir until it is wilted. Leave the chicken to rest for about 10 minutes. I put it onto a carving plate and kept the vegetables warm over a low heat on the hob. Sprinkle the vegetables with some fresh coriander. Carve the chicken and serve with the vegetables and amazing gravy which will be in the tin.
Cooked Chicken ready to serve