Chicken, Pineapple and ‘Nduja Bake Recipe

(As shared with us by Burren Balsamics)

Servings:  4 people

Time:  1 hour 40 minutes

Ingredients

’Nduja and Chipotle Paste

  • 50g of ‘nduja
  • 2 tbsp of olive oil
  • 2 tsp tomato purée
  • 1/2 tsp chipotle flake
  • 1/2 tsp paprika
  • 3/4 tsp fine salt
  • freshly ground black pepper to season, (about 20 twists of the mill)

Chicken

  • 4 bone-in chicken thighs, (skin on)
  • 4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed with the side of a knife
  • 1 medium onion, halved and very thinly sliced on a mandolin
  • 1 pineapple, large, and extra-ripe (peeled)
  • 100g of tangerine juice (from about 4 tangerines)
  • 100g of chicken bone broth (or stock or water)
  • 2 tbsp of double cream
  • 5g of fresh coriander
  • 1 lime, cut into wedges

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 6
  2. Put all the ingredients for the paste into a large bowl and mix together.  Add the chicken, garlic and three-quarters of the sliced onion and mix well so everything is coated evenly
  3. Tip the onions and garlic into a 28cm ovenproof cast-iron skillet or similar-sized baking dish and spread out.  Place the chicken thighs on top, skin side up and spaced apart
  4.  Cut the pineapple into 4 rounds, then cut each round into quarters, removing the hard core (you should have about 300g)
  5. Add the pineapple to the bowl with the remnants of the paste, mix to coat with whatever’s left there, then arrange the pineapple around the chicken
  6. Pour the tangerine juice around the chicken (don’t get the skin wet), then bake for 20 minutes
  7. Remove from the oven and pour the stock or water into the pan around the chicken (again, don’t get the skin wet)
  8. Return to the oven for another 20–25 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the skin is browned and crispy
  9. If you have a blowtorch, use it to char the pineapple a little
  10. Drizzle the cream into the sauce
  11. Toss the coriander and the remaining sliced onions together with a tiny bit of oil and salt and arrange on top
  12. Serve from the pan, with the lime wedges alongside