Traybakes, whether sweet or savoury, are so wonderful as they’re prepared and forget dishes. Once you’ve prepared them, you arrange everything on a baking tray and then just let your oven do the work. You can even serve straight off the tray so there’s even less washing up to do! I provide a recipe for tandoori paste for completeness’ sake. However, you are just as welcome to buy and use a commercial paste blend.
Prep time: 15 minutes/Cook time: 30 minutes/Serves: 4 (+30 minutes marinating)
Ingredients:
150g (3/5 cup) tub natural yogurt
180-240ml tandoori paste (see recipe below)
2 tbsp oil
28g (1 oz) coriander, chopped
900g (2 lb) chicken drumsticks, flesh scored
1 red bell pepper, deseeded and cut into thick slices
1 Aubergine (eggplant), halved and cut into wedges
400g (14 oz) sweet potatoes, scrubbed and diced
Naan bread, warmed, to serve
For the Tandoori Paste:
240ml (1 cup) Plain Yoghurt
1 Green Chilli
1 tsp Fresh ginger, grated
1 garlic clove
1/2 tsp Sea salt
1/2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
1/2 tsp black cumin
1 1/2 tsp Garam Masala
1 tsp Vinegar
1 tsp Cooking oil
1 tsp Paprika (for colour)<br/>
1/4 tsp ground turmeric
Method:
Begin with the tandoori paste: Add the yoghurt, ginger, chillies and garlic to a blender and blend until they form a smooth paste. Empty into a bowl and add all the remaining ingredients. Beat until smooth and glossy (This paste will keep in an airtight jar in the fridge for up to 4 days or it may be frozen).
Pre-heat your oven to 200°C (180°C fan/400F/gas mark 6). Mix 2 tbsp of the yogurt with the Tandoori paste, 1 tbsp oil and half the coriander in a large bowl. Mix in the chicken until evenly coated and set aside to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
Arrange the bell pepper, aubergine and sweet potato on a large baking tray and toss in the remaining oil. Season to taste then arrange the marinated chicken on top and scrape over any leftover marinade. Transfer to your pre-heated oven and bake for 30 minutes until tender and the chicken is cooked throughout (the juices run clear and there is no pink meat).
Drizzle with the remaining yogurt and scatter over the coriander. Serve with the warm naan bread.
