Honey-masala spatchcock chicken with tangy corn and mango
Something quite magical happens with you combine sticky-spicy, salty-sweet and zesty-tangy in the same dish. The amchoor dried mango powder is the secret ingredient here, it gives a sour tartness that makes all of the other flavours in the chicken and mango-corn salad really zing.
1 HOUR 20 MINUTES + BRINING | SERVES 4 A LITTLE EFFORT |
whole chicken 1.5kg
BRINE
garlic 4 cloves, crushed
lemon juice 8 tbsp
green cardamom pods 10, seeds crushed to a powder HONEY-MASALA GLAZE
runny honey 4 tbsp
garam masala 3 tsp
ground turmeric 2 tsp
lemons 2, zested
hot chilli powder ½ tsp
olive oil 4 tbsp
black peppercorns ground to make 1 tsp
CORN AND MANGO
unsalted butter 60g
ground cinnamon 1½ tsp
cayenne pepper ¼ tsp
amchoor (dried mango powder) 2 tbsp
soft light brown sugar 2 tbsp
apple cider vinegar 1½ tbsp
corn cobs 2
mangoes 2, peeled, stoned and cubed
red onion ½, finely chopped
red chilli 1, chopped, plus extra to serve
lime 1, zested and juiced
1 Make the brine by whisking all the ingredients with 1.5 litres of water and 2 tsp of fine sea salt. To spatchcock the chicken, use a pair of kitchen scissors or a sharp knife to cut along either side of the backbone, then turn the chicken breast-side up on a board and push down with your palm to flatten. Put the chicken in a large container or bowl, pour over the brine and leave for 45 minutes.
2 Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Whisk together all the ingredients for the glaze, plus 1 tsp of fine sea salt. Drain the brine from the chicken and pat dry with kitchen paper. Transfer the chicken to a roasting tin. If you like, push metal skewers through the legs and into the breasts of the chicken at diagonals to help it keep its shape. Brush two-thirds of the glaze all over the chicken, making sure it has an even layer, then cover with foil and roast for 30 minutes.
3 Remove the foil from the chicken and turn up the heat to 220C/ fan 200C/gas 7. Brush over the rest of the glaze and roast for a further 20-30 minutes, basting every 5 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and lightly charred. Cover and leave to rest for 15 minutes.
4 For the corn and mango, heat the butter in a pan with the cinnamon, cayenne, amchoor, sugar, apple cider vinegar and
1 tsp of fine sea salt, stirring until the sugar and salt have dissolved. Remove from the heat and set aside.
5 Heat the grill to high and grill the corn cobs for 10-12 minutes, turning frequently, until evenly cooked. Carefully slice the kernels off the cobs using a sharp knife, and tip onto a baking tray. Pour over the spiced butter and toss together, spreading the corn out into a single layer. Grill for 10-15 minutes until the corn is starting to caramelise and blacken slightly at the edges.
6 Tip the mango, red onion, chilli and grilled corn into a large bowl. Squeeze over the lime juice, add the lime zest and toss to combine. Top the corn and mango with more red chilli and serve alongside the roasted honey-masala chicken.
PER SERVING 814 kcals | fat 47.2G saturates 15.8G | carbs 45.3G | sugars 41.7G fibre 4.1G | protein 49.8G | salt 3.7G