Month: June 2011

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Spiced Onion Crusted Chicken

I love chicken with the skin on, all crispy and juicy and tender.  Love it.  Don’t love the extra calories though and that’s why I do love the following recipe.

Based on a Madjur Jaffrey recipe, these chicken legs and thighs are thickly coated in a spiced onion mixture and roasted until crispy.  The onions taste divine, form a wonderful crust and keep the chicken inside lovely and tender.

Try it.

Really.

Spiced Onion Crusted Chicken(Based on a recipe from The Essential Madhur Jaffrey)

(serves3-4)

8 chicken pieces (legs and thighs), skin cut off

2 medium onions, chopped very roughly

3 garlic cloves

1 tblspn chopped ginger

1/4 tspn chilli powder

1 tblspn cumin powder

1 tblspn coriander powder

1/2 tspn turmeric

1 tspn salt

Pinch of pepper

3 tblspn vinegar (white or wine or cider – not malt or balsalmic)

Big glug of olive oil

  • For the best results this need to marinate overnight.   In a food processor, whizz together the onion, spices, seasoning, vinegar and oil.  Pour all over the skinned chicken pieces and cover.  Leave in the fridge overnight.
  • Preheat oven to 200 oC (maybe a bit more if non-fan oven).  Place the chicken pieces on a tray well spaced out and spoon any extra marinade over the top.  They should look like this:

  • Roast for 40 mins, until onion mariande is golden and crisp.
  • Let cool for 10 mins before eating.
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Aloo Matar

“Aloo” is the hindi word for potato.  So popular is aloo gobi (Indian spiced potatoes with cauliflower) and aloo saag (with spinach) in the UK that the word “aloo” has recently been entered into the official Scrabble dictionary.  That tickles me.

Aloo matar is my favourite of the aloo dishes and this is how I make it.  It’s a cracker of a recipe, I must say.  🙂

Aloo Matar

(serves 4 as a side or 2 as a main)

1 large onion, thickly sliced

1 tblspn vegetable oil

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 tspn coriander

1 tspn cumin

1/4 tspn turmeric

1/4 tspn chilli powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

500g potatoes, cut roughly into 3cm bits

250g peas (frozen ones work a treat)

1 tblspn garam masala

Handful of fresh coriander

  • Fry the onion gently in the oil until golden brown.
  • Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds.  Stir in the coriander, cumin, turmeric and chilli.  Cook for another minute.
  • Add the potatoes, salt and pepper to the pan along with 50ml water. Stir to coat the potatoes thoroughly.  Once the liquid is very gently simmering put a lid on the pan and let the potatoes steam gently in the spices for 10 mins.  Stir occasionally.
  • Add the peas to the pan and continue to steam under a lid until potatoes are soft.
  • Stir through the garam masala and serve sprinkled generously with coriander.

(Chicken recipe to come.  It’s a cracker too.)