Recipe: Piri piri chicken with dressed potatoes, argula salad, and quick Portuguese tarts
Ingredients
- Chicken
- 4 large chicken thighs, skin on and bone in
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 yellow bell pepper
- 6 sprigs of fresh thyme
- Cilantro leaves
- Potatoes
- 1 medium potato
- 2 sweet potatoes
- 1/2 lemon
- 1 fresh red chile
- A bunch of fresh cilantro
- 2 ounces feta cheese
- Piri piri sauce
- 1 red onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1–2 bird’s-eye chiles
- 2 tablespoons sweet smoked paprika
- 2 lemons
- 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (such as Lea & Perrins)
- A large bunch of fresh basil
- Salad
- 1 x 5-ounce package of prewashed arugula
- 1/2 lemon
- Seasonings
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt & black pepper
- Tarts
- All-purpose flour, for dusting
- 1 large sheet all-butter puff pastry (14-ounce package), thawed if frozen
- Ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup crème fraîche or heavy cream
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla paste or vanilla extract
- 5 tablespoons superfine sugar
- 1 orange
Preparation
To start, get all your ingredients and equipment ready. Turn the oven on to 400 degrees F. Put a large grill pan on at high heat. First, put the chicken thighs on a plastic cutting board, skin side down, and slash the meat on each one a few times. Drizzle with olive oil and season, then put on the griddle pan that is heating up, skin side down. Cook until golden underneath, then turn over. Wash your hands.
For the tarts, dust a clean surface with flour. Unfold the sheet of pastry and cut an 8-inch square from the pastry. Put the trimmings into the refrigerator for another use. Sprinkle over a few good pinches of ground cinnamon, then roll the pastry into a jelly roll shape and cut into 6 rounds. Put these into 6 of the cups in a muffin pan, and use your thumbs to stretch and mold the pastry into the cups (just like in the picture) so the bottom is flat and the pastry comes up to the top. Put on the top shelf of the oven and cook for around 8 to 10 minutes (set the timer), or until lightly golden.
For the potatoes, wash the potato and sweet potatoes and halve lengthways. Put them into a large microwave-safe bowl with 1/2 lemon. Cover with plastic wrap and put into the microwave on full power for 15 minutes.
Turn the chicken over.
Returning to the tarts, spoon the crème fraîche into a small bowl. Add the egg, vanilla paste or extract, 1 tablespoon of superfine sugar, and the zest of 1 orange. Mix well.
For piri piri sauce, peel and roughly chop the red onion and add to the blender with 4 peeled cloves of garlic. Add the chiles (stalks removed), 2 tablespoons of paprika, the zest of 2 lemons, and juice of 1 lemon. Add ¼ cup of white wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce, a good pinch of salt & pepper, the large bunch of basil, and a slug of water. Blitz until smooth.
For the chicken, slice the bell peppers into strips and add to the grill pan. Turn the heat down to medium and keep moving the peppers around.
Take the muffin pan with the tarts out of the oven, and use a teaspoon to press the puffed-up pastry back to the sides and make room for the filling. Spoon the crème fraîche mixture into the tart cases, and return to the top shelf of the oven. Set the timer for 8 minutes.
Pour the piri piri sauce into a snug-fitting roasting pan. Lay the bell peppers on top and put aside. Add the chicken to the roasting pan with the sauce. Scatter over the sprigs of thyme, then put the tray into the middle of the oven.
For the tarts, put a small saucepan on high heat. Squeeze in the juice from the zested orange and add ¼ cup of superfine sugar. Stir and keep a good eye on it, but remember caramel can burn badly so don’t touch or taste.
Returning to the potatoes, finely chop the chile and most of the cilantro on a board, mixing as you go. Add the feta and keep chopping and mixing.
Take the tarts out of the oven and move the chicken up to the top shelf to cook for around 10 minutes, or until cooked through. Pour some caramel over each tart (they’ll still be wobbly, but that’s good). Put aside to set.
For the salad, quickly dress the arugula, still in its package, with extra virgin olive oil, a good pinch of salt & pepper, and the juice of ½ lemon. Tip into a bowl and take to the table.
Check the potatoes are cooked through, then use tongs to squeeze over the cooked lemon. Add the cilantro mixture from the chopping board and mix everything together. Season, then take to the table.
To serve, get the pan of chicken out of the oven, sprinkle over a few cilantro leaves, and take straight to the table.
For the tarts, dust a clean surface with flour. Unfold the sheet of pastry and cut an 8-inch square from the pastry. Put the trimmings into the refrigerator for another use. Sprinkle over a few good pinches of ground cinnamon, then roll the pastry into a jelly roll shape and cut into 6 rounds. Put these into 6 of the cups in a muffin pan, and use your thumbs to stretch and mold the pastry into the cups (just like in the picture) so the bottom is flat and the pastry comes up to the top. Put on the top shelf of the oven and cook for around 8 to 10 minutes (set the timer), or until lightly golden.
For the potatoes, wash the potato and sweet potatoes and halve lengthways. Put them into a large microwave-safe bowl with 1/2 lemon. Cover with plastic wrap and put into the microwave on full power for 15 minutes.
Turn the chicken over.
Returning to the tarts, spoon the crème fraîche into a small bowl. Add the egg, vanilla paste or extract, 1 tablespoon of superfine sugar, and the zest of 1 orange. Mix well.
For piri piri sauce, peel and roughly chop the red onion and add to the blender with 4 peeled cloves of garlic. Add the chiles (stalks removed), 2 tablespoons of paprika, the zest of 2 lemons, and juice of 1 lemon. Add ¼ cup of white wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce, a good pinch of salt & pepper, the large bunch of basil, and a slug of water. Blitz until smooth.
For the chicken, slice the bell peppers into strips and add to the grill pan. Turn the heat down to medium and keep moving the peppers around.
Take the muffin pan with the tarts out of the oven, and use a teaspoon to press the puffed-up pastry back to the sides and make room for the filling. Spoon the crème fraîche mixture into the tart cases, and return to the top shelf of the oven. Set the timer for 8 minutes.
Pour the piri piri sauce into a snug-fitting roasting pan. Lay the bell peppers on top and put aside. Add the chicken to the roasting pan with the sauce. Scatter over the sprigs of thyme, then put the tray into the middle of the oven.
For the tarts, put a small saucepan on high heat. Squeeze in the juice from the zested orange and add ¼ cup of superfine sugar. Stir and keep a good eye on it, but remember caramel can burn badly so don’t touch or taste.
Returning to the potatoes, finely chop the chile and most of the cilantro on a board, mixing as you go. Add the feta and keep chopping and mixing.
Take the tarts out of the oven and move the chicken up to the top shelf to cook for around 10 minutes, or until cooked through. Pour some caramel over each tart (they’ll still be wobbly, but that’s good). Put aside to set.
For the salad, quickly dress the arugula, still in its package, with extra virgin olive oil, a good pinch of salt & pepper, and the juice of ½ lemon. Tip into a bowl and take to the table.
Check the potatoes are cooked through, then use tongs to squeeze over the cooked lemon. Add the cilantro mixture from the chopping board and mix everything together. Season, then take to the table.
To serve, get the pan of chicken out of the oven, sprinkle over a few cilantro leaves, and take straight to the table.
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