Grilled and roasted chicken with poriyal

This chicken is served alongside a brilliantly British version of poriyal, a spiced South Indian side of fried peas, broad beans and asparagus.

Ingredients

For the chicken

• 1 whole free-range, corn-fed chicken, off the bone

• 200g/7oz sheep’s ricotta

• 100g/3½oz cream cheese

• 100g/3½oz labneh

• 1 tsp ground cardamom

• ½ tsp ground mace

• ½ tsp ground black pepper

• 1 tsp fennel pollen

• ½ nutmeg, grated

• 2 pinches saffron, soaked in 2 tbsp hot whole milk

• 20g/¾oz fresh coriander, finely chopped, plus extra to serve

• 2 tbsp olive oil

• 1 lemon, juice and zest

• splash white wine

• sea salt, to taste

For the poriyal

• 100ml/3½fl oz sunflower oil

• 2 tsp mustard seeds

• 2 sprigs fresh curry leaves

• 2 bird’s-eye green chillies, slit in half

• 1 medium Indian onion, chopped

• 250g/9oz fresh peas, podded

• 250g/9oz fresh broad beans, podded

• 250g/9oz asparagus, chopped the same size as the peas

• 10g/½oz fresh coriander, chopped

• 200g/7oz fresh grated coconut

• 2 limes, juice only

• sea salt, to taste

Method

1. To make the chicken, preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/Gas 7. Season the meat with sea salt.

2. In a bowl, mix together the ricotta, cream cheese, labneh, spices, saffron milk and finely chopped coriander. Add a pinch of sea salt, mix well and transfer to a piping bag.

3. Pipe the ricotta mix under the skin of the chicken breast and thigh, then massage the skin with the olive oil.

4. Preheat the grill to its highest setting or prepare a barbecue. Once hot, add the chicken and colour the skin until charred.

5. Transfer to a baking tray, add the lemon rind, white wine and the halved lemons. Roast for 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear.

6. Meanwhile, to make the poriyal, heat the sunflower oil in a pan and crackle the mustard seeds.

7. Add the curry leaves, bird’s-eye chillies and onions and fry until translucent on a medium heat. This will take 3–4 minutes.

8. Add the peas, broad beans and asparagus to the pan and season with sea salt. Cook until soft, this will take 3–4 minutes.

9. Add the fresh coriander and grated coconut to the pan and mix well. Then add the lime juice and mix again.

10. To serve, slice the cooked chicken and pour over the roasting juices, adding some extra fresh coriander to garnish. Serve the poriyal alongside.

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