PIRI PIRI CHICKEN WITH LITTLE GEM SALAD

I’ll tell you a secret. I once had an in-depth conversation with a fellow Michelin- starred chef about just how good Nando’s extra hot chicken is. Who doesn’t love piri piri chicken? This is such a great recipe, a real favourite of mine for when that hot, hot chicken craving hits. The crisp, cool and herby salad is all you really need with it.

INGREDIENTS

SERVES: 4

1 large free-range chicken (about 2kg)

For the chilli paste:

2 dried hot red chillies

100ml red wine vinegar

6 fresh red chillies, roughly chopped, seeds and all

6 garlic cloves, peeled

2 tsp flaky sea salt

2 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried thyme

5 tsp erythritol (sugar replacement)

Juice of 2 lemons

For the salad:

6 Little Gem lettuces, leaves separated from the core

½ cucumber, halved, deseeded and sliced

6 pickled green chillies, roughly chopped

½ bunch of mint (about 15g), leaves picked from stems

½ bunch of coriander (about 15g), leaves picked from the stems

2 tbsp salad cream

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

METHOD

1: Remove the skin from the chicken: work your fingers under the skin, over the flesh, until you have loosened it enough to pull it off. Score the chicken all over (including the legs and the underside), making the cuts about 1cm deep.

2: To prepare the chilli paste, put the dried chillies in a small saucepan with the wine vinegar and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and leave to cool and allow the chillies to rehydrate.

3: Put the fresh chillies, garlic and rehydrated chillies and their soaking vinegar into a food processor and blitz. Add the salt, smoked paprika, oregano, thyme, erythritol and lemon juice and blitz again to a paste.

4: Spread the paste all over the chicken and massage it into the cuts (protect your hands with latex gloves or wash them thoroughly after handling the chilli paste). Place the chicken in a roasting tin, cover with cling film and put into the fridge. Leave to marinate for at least 4 hours, but overnight would be even better to allow the flavours to develop.

5: Preheat the oven to 140°C/Fan 120°C/Gas 1. Unwrap the chicken and cook in the oven for 2½ hours.

6: Turn the oven setting up to 220°C/Fan 200°C/ Gas 7 and cook for a further 25–30 minutes, until a golden crust forms on the outside of the chicken. Remove from the oven and set aside to rest for 20 minutes.

7: While the chicken is resting, place all of the salad ingredients in a bowl and toss together, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.

8: Carve the rested chicken and serve with the salad. It is also good served cold.

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