Our Moroccan chicken, apricot and potato bake is flavoured with turmeric which is known for it's anti-inflammatory properties. It makes a delicious alternative to a roast chicken and leftovers are great the next day too.
Ingredients
- 1 whole free-range chicken
- 125ml olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1tbsp coriander seeds
- 1tsp dried turmeric or 1tbsp of freshly peeled and finely grated turmeric
- 4 medium sweet potatoes, sliced in rounds
- 80g dried apricots, roughly chopped
- 1 orange, thickly sliced
- 1 bulb fennel, cut into chunks
- 1 glass of white wine
- 1 bunch mixed parsley, roughly chopped
- 4 spring onions, sliced
Method
To prepare the chicken: using poultry (or very strong!) scissors, slice down the backbone and flatten to open. Score the chicken a few times. In a small blender or spice grinder, blitz together the olive oil, garlic, coriander seeds and turmeric. Rub this mixture over the chicken, and leave to marinade in the fridge for an hour or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas 6. Place the potatoes, apricots, orange slices and fennel on the base of a roasting tin. Top with the marinated chicken. Drizzle with the remaining marinade and pour the wine over the potatoes and apricots, season well and cover with tinfoil. Roast the chicken for 30mins then remove the foil and reduce to 180C/Gas 4 and cook for a further 45mins until the chicken has cooked through and golden.
To serve: top the chicken with the herbs and spring onions and serve with a crunchy green salad.
Top Tip for making Moroccan chicken, apricot and potato bake
Use left over celery tops and the carcass from the chicken to make a delicious stock.
