What we're aiming for:
Hearty whole chicken dish for 4 people to share - or for 2 with plenty leftovers
A side dish of cheesy, baked sweet potato mash (a take on a Jamie Oliver Christmas Cookbook special)
Serve with steamed greens for a bit of colour
Hearty whole chicken dish for 4 people to share - or for 2 with plenty leftovers
A side dish of cheesy, baked sweet potato mash (a take on a Jamie Oliver Christmas Cookbook special)
Serve with steamed greens for a bit of colour
The Components:
For the main chicken dish:
For the mango atchar marinade: Note that this should be made 2-3 hours or up to 3 days before you're ready to cook the chicken.
For the baked sweet potato mash:
- 1 free range chicken, cut into pieces
- 4 tbsp sweet paprika
- 3 garlic cloves, peeled and ready to finely grate
- Sea salt and ground black pepper
- 3 tbsp rapeseed oil
- Fresh coriander/cilantro for garnish
For the mango atchar marinade: Note that this should be made 2-3 hours or up to 3 days before you're ready to cook the chicken.
- 1 mango, finely grated (about 250g)
- 1 tbsp mustard seeds
- ½ tbsp chilli powder
- 3 garlic cloves, peeled and ready to mince into the mixture
- 1 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
For the baked sweet potato mash:
- 2 large sweet potatoes
- 100g unsalted butter (like Kerrygold)
- 200g of your favourite type of cheese - cheddar, Red Leicester and such works well
- Olive oil
- 200ml almond milk - optional
- ½ a nutmeg, for grating
- Sea salt and ground black pepper
The Algorithm:
For the mango atchar marinade: To be made 2-3 hours or up to 3 days before you're ready to cook the chicken.
- Place all the ingredients in a glass jar with a lid and stir until the salt and sugar is dissolved.
- Cover and leave to stand for 2-3 hours or up to 3 days.
When you’ve prepared the mango atchar and you’re ready to cook the chicken:
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (about 400°F)
- Place the chicken portions in a large bowl and add in the paprika and grate in the garlic. (You may need to do this in batches as it’s a lot of chicken so balance and measure accordingly.)
- Season generously with sea salt and ground black pepper and toss the chicken pieces until evenly coated.
- Now heat a large deep pan over a med-high heat.
- Add the oil and fry the chicken pieces in batches until they are golden brown on all sides.
- Remove to a plate lined with kitchen paper to soak up the extra oil.
- From the plate, add the chicken pieces to a clean bowl and pour over the mango atchar, tossing to coat completely and arrange the pieces on a lined baking tray.
- Place in the oven to roast for 40 minutes or until cooked through and browned.
**Aim to start the baked sweet potato mash so it can go into the oven with the chicken for the last 35 minutes.
For the baked sweet potato mash:
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F)
- Peel the sweet potatoes, cutting them into quarters (or so, all similar size if possible)
- Cook in a large pan of boiling salted water for 10-15 minutes (or until cooked through)
- Drain in a colander and leave a few moments to let the steam off
- Return to the pan and mash well
- Mix in 50g of butter and the milk (or alternatively for a more healthier option, a few glugs of olive oil)
- Finely grate in the half nutmeg, mix, then taste and season as desired
- Now lightly grease an appropriately sized dish with a little of the butter
- Coarsely grate in enough cheese so you can pat it all around the dish
- Spoon in the mash, randomly adding little bombs of cheese as you go
- Dot over the remaining butter, drizzle lightly with the olive oil and then pop in the oven to bake for 35 minutes or until golden and crispy
Serve warm with the mashed sweet potato, some steamed greens and coriander leaves sprinkled on top for a nice pop of colour.
- Place all the ingredients in a glass jar with a lid and stir until the salt and sugar is dissolved.
- Cover and leave to stand for 2-3 hours or up to 3 days.
When you’ve prepared the mango atchar and you’re ready to cook the chicken:
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (about 400°F)
- Place the chicken portions in a large bowl and add in the paprika and grate in the garlic. (You may need to do this in batches as it’s a lot of chicken so balance and measure accordingly.)
- Season generously with sea salt and ground black pepper and toss the chicken pieces until evenly coated.
- Now heat a large deep pan over a med-high heat.
- Add the oil and fry the chicken pieces in batches until they are golden brown on all sides.
- Remove to a plate lined with kitchen paper to soak up the extra oil.
- From the plate, add the chicken pieces to a clean bowl and pour over the mango atchar, tossing to coat completely and arrange the pieces on a lined baking tray.
- Place in the oven to roast for 40 minutes or until cooked through and browned.
**Aim to start the baked sweet potato mash so it can go into the oven with the chicken for the last 35 minutes.
For the baked sweet potato mash:
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F)
- Peel the sweet potatoes, cutting them into quarters (or so, all similar size if possible)
- Cook in a large pan of boiling salted water for 10-15 minutes (or until cooked through)
- Drain in a colander and leave a few moments to let the steam off
- Return to the pan and mash well
- Mix in 50g of butter and the milk (or alternatively for a more healthier option, a few glugs of olive oil)
- Finely grate in the half nutmeg, mix, then taste and season as desired
- Now lightly grease an appropriately sized dish with a little of the butter
- Coarsely grate in enough cheese so you can pat it all around the dish
- Spoon in the mash, randomly adding little bombs of cheese as you go
- Dot over the remaining butter, drizzle lightly with the olive oil and then pop in the oven to bake for 35 minutes or until golden and crispy
Serve warm with the mashed sweet potato, some steamed greens and coriander leaves sprinkled on top for a nice pop of colour.
