Chicken Challenge

A close personal friend of mine recently threw down a challenge to make an exotic marinated chicken recipe and today's blog entry is about the recipe I made to respond to this. 

The week had ended in quite a sombre way as I had learned that an old friend, who I met during my uni days and kept in touch with after graduation, had lost his two year battle with cancer on St George's Day. Another hero the late, great England Batsman Denis Compton also passed away on St George's Day in 1997. However this friend of mine was a hero much closer to home. 

The choice of music to go with the cooking was David Bowie's 1977 album "Heroes". Bowie himself also lost a battle with the same type of cancer that my friend had. I first heard the album on the original vinyl in Autumn 2004 while studying a degree in my parents'cobweb ridden attic. It was on the degree I was studying for that I first met my friend. I noticed when I visited his student house in the City a few months later after first making friends that he too owned a copy of this album. It was one of the many connections I shared with him over the years. He is gone too soon. 

The album, which I chose to listen to as a tribute to him, can be heard at: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mO2pGEUc5-vrZZDGEi9uJI33xEZfYGCh0

The ingredients of this recipe are as follows:

Four Chicken Thighs.

The marinade is made from:

Half a cup of Olive Oil.
The juice of two Lemons.
Six Garlic Cloves, peeled and sliced very finely into small cubes. 
One teaspoon of Black Pepper. 
One teaspoon of Ground Cumin.
One teaspoon of Paprika.
One teaspoon of Turmeric.
One teaspoon of Ground Cinnamon. 
One teaspoon of Garlic Salt.
One teaspoon of Chilli Flakes. 
One ripe White Onion, peeled and sliced finely into small squares. 

The method for this recipe is:

1. Mix the marinade ingredients together in a measuring jug or bowl. 

2. Use a brush to cover the Chicken Thighs with the marinade ingredients. 

3. Place the marinated Chicken Thighs and excess marinade on a baking tray with high sides. Cover the tray with clingfilm and leave for one or two hours to allow the flavours to infuse. 

4. Cook in the oven on Gas Mark Seven for forty minutes. 

5. Serve with a side of your choice. I found that homemade Peas Fried Rice, which I made by boiling some Brown Rice for fifteen minutes and Garden Peas for five minutes before lightly frying them and the Rice with some Soy Sauce, went well with this recipe. 

The recipe was made special by the marinade fusing with the skin of the chicken thighs to create a golden brown colour and a taste that balanced sweet and sour in just the right way. 

The thighs have it- a golden, crispy Chicken with plenty of Peas Fried Rice.