Gunpowder Chicken Traybake
I used to be a person who went to new restaurant openings. Sometimes even soft openings because I knew some people and they knew I have an opinion on everything but especially on food and service. So it is always slightly embarrassing to me when I have to admit I’ve never been to a restaurant I assume everyone else has been to. Such as Dishoom in London. I have never been there, to any of them.
I’ve seen their dining rooms in lifestyle and design magazines. Pretty sure I’ve even saved a photo to a Pinterest board titled Yes, Please. Yet I have never set foot in a physical location, which pains me because from everything I hear they are great at what they do. In the way great restaurants are talked about, their gunpowder potatoes have been a key part of their legend so when Waitrose came out with a Cook’s Choice Gunpowder Spice Blend I thought it was a way to cheat my way to less social anxiety around restaurant one-upmanship. I may not have been to Dishoom but I’ve put a spice blend on my roast potatoes and that’ll do, pig, that will do just fine.
Of course that isn’t how things work because I didn’t have any potatoes and I needed to make an entire dinner so instead I used the spice in a chicken traybake. It came out as kind of a dry curry chicken thigh mess that went really well over rice, in the end. This is my favourite kind of cooking- the kind that is born of hungry bellies, limited ingredients and no time to go to the store. It is the kind of cooking I think most of us spend the majority of our time doing, regardless of our intentions and ambitions. Love a spice blend, they’re like dry shampoo – a faster way to get you out the door with a little more confidence. Maybe to Dishoom, even. Maybe.
Ingredients
These are for serving so any/all are optional and based on your taste
Instructions
If you remember, take out the chicken about fifteen minutes before you’re going to turn the oven on. If you have a dog, about the time it takes to a quick walk around the block before starting dinner so they aren’t constantly begging for attention.
Turn the oven on to pre heat to 200C/190F
The goal here is to have everything ready to go before the oven has preheated. Depending on your oven, that may be more of a challenge than you’re up for but keep the prep in that spirit: quick and loose. I mix everything on the tray and it can get a little messy. If that freaks you out, then put it all in a big bowl and transfer to the tray when you’re done.
Put the chicken thighs on the tray first. Pour enough oil over them so there is extra in the bottom of the pan but not too much. We’re not deep frying anything. You just want it covered enough that the spice will stick and there is a little spicy oil around to share with the other ingredients. Once you have the amount of oil that makes you feel good, cover the thighs in the spice blend. It isn’t particularly hot to my taste so I was liberal enough with it that I couldn’t see any more skin, just the spice. Make it look like something you’ll want to eat.
Once the chicken thighs are sitting in their spice oil, wash the tomatoes and put them directly on the pan. I know I have enough when the distribution of colors looks pleasing to me. They are going to cook down and become kind of jammy and let their juice out onto the pan to create a light sauce that will be great on rice later. So you want enough that there will be some juice to work with. For me that means the entire pack but I’m also very sensitive to leaving a small amount of cherry tomatoes behind. I always feel like they will get lonely so I throw them in with the rest of their brethren so they can have the same fate.
Quarter those red onions and throw them on the pan.
Take one clove of garlic per chicken thigh, smash it lightly with the flat side of a big knife and throw them on the pan.
The beauty of a traybake is that they’re more an idea than an academic exercise. It doesn’t matter what kind of potatoes you have but it is easier if they are on the small side so they can bake at a (relatively) low temperature for potatoes and finish at the same time as the chicken thighs. I like charlotte potatoes in chicken traybakes because they are waxy and hold their shape well. Make sure they are washed well and get them on the pan.
Really, that is it but if you happen to have other vegetables that need to be used, try them out. I’ve put thick cut courgette in before which was nice. Any kind of pepper or chili would work really well. Maybe avoid celery? But it is your dinner so do what you need to do.
Now that everything is on the tray, give it all a good squidge around in the extra oil from the chicken thighs. You want the spice to mostly remain on the chicken and also for the oil to get all over everything so it doesn’t dry out. If you want to add extra salt and pepper, now is the time to do it. If you aren’t sure if you want to add salt taste a bit of the spice blend on its own. If it already tastes salty to you, you probably don’t need more.
If you were super speedy the oven might not even be ready yet but when it is, put the tray in and set a timer for 25 minutes. At 25 minutes start checking to see if it is done. You want the chicken thighs to have some color that is not because of the spice blend and for the tomatoes to have cooked down and have maybe even gotten brown. I usually stab a bigger potato with a fork to make sure they’re done, too. When all of that is true, take it out the oven.
We serve this with rice and I put the rice on when I put the chicken in. It is usually done before the chicken unless I get chatting to someone but it is better done early than everyone sitting at the table waiting for the rice to be ready.
When the chicken is cooked and out of the oven, garnish with the coriander, sliced green onions and crushed, roasted salted peanuts. If you want it extra spicy you can also put sliced chilies on top. I don’t put the sour cream directly on it because not everyone in this house appreciates that so we put it on the table instead and inside I feel bad for them that they don’t like sour cream.
