Chicken and Pine Nut Pilav (gf)

Aromatic spices and juices from the chicken combine to make this a wonderfully hearty and super delicious one-pan meal.

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 skin on, bone in chicken thighs

4 chicken drumsticks

sea salt and ground pepper

2 brown onions, thickly sliced

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 teaspoon sea salt

2 teaspoons each ground cinnamon and ground allspice

¼ teaspoon chilli flakes

1½ cups long grain rice, rinsed and drained (I used basmati)

½ cup pine nuts or chopped roasted almonds

½ cup barberries or currants

3 cups chicken stock

TO SERVE

small handful parsley, chopped

lemon wedges

Preheat the oven to 180°C fan bake.

Heat the oil in a large (35cm) ovenproof sauté pan. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and brown on both sides. Transfer to a plate. Don’t wash the pan.

Add the onions, garlic and salt to the pan. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the spices and cook for 1 minute then stir in all the remaining ingredients. Nestle the chicken, skin-side up, into the rice but not covering the skin. Bake, uncovered, for about 40 minutes, or until the chicken is fully cooked through and the rice is tender.

TO SERVE: Fluff up the rice with a fork and scatter over the parsley. Serve with the lemon wedges. SERVES 4