Pot-roast Bombay chicken

Ingredients

• 1 small whole chicken
• 5 tbsp tikka masala paste
• 1 tbsp sunflower oil
• 1 large red onion, halved and sliced
• 2 large tomatoes, halved and chopped
• 1 tbsp fenugreek seeds
• 1 thumb-sized piece ginger, grated
• 2 x 400g cans full-fat coconut milk
• 500g new potatoes, halved
• 100g baby spinach
• 25g pack coriander, torn, to serve
• poppadums and chutney, to serve (optional)

Method

• STEP 1

Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 6. Put the chicken on a chopping board and, using your hands, rub the skin generously with half the spice paste. Season well, tie the legs together and set aside.

• STEP 2

Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole dish over a medium heat. Add the onion and a good pinch of salt and cook for 5 mins or until beginning to soften. Add the tomatoes, fenugreek seeds, ginger and remaining spice paste, and cook for 3 mins more. Stir through the coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Add the chicken and the potatoes to the dish, and cook in the oven for 20 mins, uncovered.

• STEP 3

Lower the heat to 180C/160C fan/ gas 4 and cook for 55 mins more. Check that the meat is cooked by cutting through one of its legs – the flesh shouldn’t be pink.

• STEP 4

Remove the chicken and place on a chopping board. Stir the spinach through the sauce and leave to rest for 5 mins. Put the chicken back in the dish, top with the coriander and carve at the table. Serve with poppadums and chutney, if you like.