- 2 onion
- 2 red pepper
- 2 chilli
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 4 blood oranges
- 4 chicken thighs & 2 chicken drumsticks
- 300g brown basmati rice
- 1 cucumber
- 500g cherry vine tomatoes
- 100g sweet salad mix
- 8 tsp olive oil
- 100ml cold water
- Sea salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- 300ml boiling water
- Baking tray
- Food processor (optional)
- Measuring jug
- Roasting tin
- Small pan with a lid
- 1.
Heat your oven to 220°C/Fan 200°C/Gas 8. Heat your grill to its highest setting. Peel and chop the onion into 8 wedges. Halve the red pepper and scoop out the seeds. Trim the stalk off the chilli.
- 2.
Line a baking tray with foil. Set the onion, pepper, chilli and 1 unpeeled garlic clove on the tray. Drizzle the onion with 2 tsp olive oil and grill for 8-10 mins, turning the chilli over halfway through, till everything is charred.
- 3.
Pop the pepper and chilli into a bowl and cover with a plate. Cool for 5 mins, then carefully peel off the skin (don’t worry if some charred skin stays on). For a less spicy dish, halve the chilli and scrape out the seeds and white bits. Squeeze the garlic out of its papery skin.
- 4.
Add the roast veg and garlic to a processor with 1 tsp dried oregano and 1 tbsp red wine vinegar. Juice in 1 blood orange. Add 100ml cold water, season and blitz. No food processor? Finely chop everything and stir in the vinegar, juice and water to make a chunky sauce. Fill and boil your kettle.
- 5.
Rub 1 tsp olive oil into each chicken piece and season well. Pop them in a roasting tin, skinside up and spoon over the piri piri sauce. Cut the remaining blood orange into 8 wedges and nestle them around the chicken. Roast for 40 mins till the chicken is cooked through.
- 6.
While the chicken cooks, peel the remaining garlic clove. Rinse the rice and tip it into a small pan. Add 300ml boiling water and the garlic. Cover, bring to the boil then turn the heat down and simmer for 25 mins. When the water is absorbed, take the pan off the heat and set aside for 5 mins, lid on, to steam. Pick out the garlic clove, squash it and stir back into the rice.
- 7.
Meanwhile, chop half the cucumber. Halve the cherry tomatoes. Add to a bowl with the salad mix. Toss with 2 tsp olive oil and some seasoning.
- 8.
Serve the chicken with the piri piri sauce, garlicky rice, cucumber salad and roasted orange wedges.
- Tip
Get ahead
You can make the blood orange piri-piri sauce up to 3 days ahead, and store it in the fridge ready to pour over the chicken before roasting. Make the sauce up till the end of step 4, transfer to a bowl or tub, cover and store in the fridge. - Tip
Cuketails
Your leftover cucumber half will keep in the fridge for a couple of days. Add slice of it to jugs of water or elderflower cordial to add a delicate cucumber flavour to them, or as a garnish for your G&T instead of the usual ice and a slice.