SPICED ROAST CHICKEN WITH PEPPERS, AUBERGINE & ONION
Rather than a long list of spices, I like to use ras-el-hanout for this
An easy, all-in-one chicken traybake for a casual dinner with friends, packed with flavourful vegetables. Rather than a long list of spices, I like to use ras-el-hanout for this. It’s a readily available Middle Eastern spice mix that adds a lovely warming flavour to the dish. It isn’t hot in the way that chilli is, so if your guests like spicy food, add a teaspoon of chilli flakes as well.
Serves 4
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 25-30 minutes
1 large aubergine, cut into 1.5cm cubes
2 red peppers, cut into 1cm slices
1 yellow pepper, cut into 1cm slices
1 red onion, roughly sliced
4 vine tomatoes, quartered
3 cloves of garlic
4 heaped tsp ras-el-hanout
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sea salt flakes
4 free-range chicken breasts (halved if very large)
TO SERVE
a handful of fresh coriander, chopped
natural yogurt
couscous or flatbreads
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
- Tip the aubergine, peppers, onion, tomatoes and garlic into a large roasting tin along with 2 teaspoons of the ras-el-hanout, 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the sea salt flakes. Mix really well with your hands.
- Arrange the chicken breasts over the vegetables and drizzle the other tablespoon of oil over them, followed by a good pinch of salt and the remaining ras-el-hanout.
- Transfer to the oven and roast for 25-30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.
- Serve scattered with the fresh coriander, with yogurt on the side, alongside a pile of flatbreads or buttery couscous.
The recipes on these pages are taken from best-selling cookery writer and food stylist Rukmini Iyer’s new book The Quick Roasting Tin (Square Peg, £16.99).
To order a copy for £10.99 with free p&p until 12 January, call 01603 648155 or go to mailshop.co.uk. Rukmini’s fee for this feature has been donated to Crisis, Shelter and Rape Crisis South London