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Blood Orange Piri Piri Chicken

A flavourful and easy recipe for Piri Piri chicken with a fresh citrus twist, making the most of delicious blood oranges when they come into season at the beginning of the year.

From the book

Introduction

Piri piri chicken is a Portuguese classic. Sorrel's version, with new season blood oranges, is the new-improved classic that'll bring a ray of cheer to even the most melancholic Fado.

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Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil
4 chicken thighs
1 blood orange
For the piri piri sauce:
1 onion
1 red pepper
1 red chilli
1 tsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 blood orange
100ml cold water
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Essential kit

You will need: a food processor.

Method

Start by making the piri piri sauce. Heat your grill to its highest setting. Peel the onion and cut into eight wedges. Cut the pepper in half and scoop out the seeds. Pull the stalk from the chilli. 

Line a large baking tray with foil and arrange the onion, pepper and chilli on it. Drizzle the onion wedges with 1 tbsp of oil. Add the garlic cloves (whole and unpeeled).

Grill for 10 mins. Turn the chilli over and grill for another 5-10 mins till everything is charred.

Preheat your oven to 220°C/Gas 7.

Pop the pepper halves and chilli in a bowl and cover with cling film. Leave for 5 mins to cool, then carefully peel off the blackened skin (don't worry if some skin stays attached). For a less spicy dish, slice open the chilli and scrape out the seeds and white bits. Carefully squeeze the grilled garlic from its skin.

Put the pepper, chilli, garlic and onion into a food processor. Add the oregano and vinegar. Squeeze in the juice from the blood orange. Add the water. Season and blitz. No processor? Finely chop the veg and stir with the oregano, vinegar, orange juice and water.

Drizzle 1 tbsp of oil over the chicken. Rub the oil into the skin of each thigh and season. Heat a griddle or frying pan till it's hot. Add the chicken thighs, skin-side down. Fry for 3-4 mins till the skin in crisp.

Transfer to a roasting tin, skin-side up. Spoon over the piri piri sauce. Cut the blood orange into eight wedges and nestle around the chicken. Roast for 40 mins till the chicken is cooked through.

Dining Circles: Organic chooks have the tastiest diet, which in turn makes them even more delicious. Most non-organic chickens are fed genetically modified (GM) ingredients. Organic certification means this isn't the case. They also get plenty of sunshine, which gives them (and you) more vitamin D. 

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From the book: Abel & Cole: How to Eat Brilliantly Every Day

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