Cajun & Soy Chicken

Cajun & Soy Chicken
Prep time: 10-15 mins (chicken at room temp) | Marinating time: 2 – 6 hrs or overnight | Baking time: 22-25 mins | Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 kg chicken thighs with skin * see notes
• oil for basting

For the marinade:

• 2 teaspoons cajun spice mix * see notes
• 1 teaspoon mixed dried herbs (oregano, rosemary)
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon sweet soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon mustard sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
• 1 small green chilli, deseeded and minced
• 1 inch ginger grated or finely chopped
• 5 flakes of garlic minced
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley or coriander minced
• 3 teaspoons lime juice
• 1 teaspoon salt

Method:
1. Wash and drain the chicken well on a colander. To remove the excess moisture pat the pieces with an absorbent kitchen tissue or clean ea towel. Keep aside
2. In a marinating bowl add and mix all the ingredients mentioned under ‘For the marinade‘. Add the chicken pieces – if you wish you can add light cuts over the pieces so that it pulls the marinade well. 3. Marinate all the pieces well and cover the bowl with a cling film/plastic wrap and keep aside preferably in the fridge for 2-6 hours – longer the better.
4. Preheat oven to 200 degrees C. Place a grill rack over a roasting tray (the tray helps collect the juices that drip from the chicken).
5. Place the marinated chicken with the skin side up over the grill rack and bake it for 12 minutes. Then remove the tray out and flip the pieces so that they cook on the other side for 8 minutes.
6. Now change the oven setting to ‘grill/broil’ mode and flip the chicken back with the skin side facing up. Grill for 2-3 minutes so that the colour changes to a deep golden and you get that grilled look.
7. Remove from the oven, garnish with chopped coriander if required and serve hot with mashed potatoes or plain white rice or sauteed/oven roasted potato wedges/french beans/mushrooms and peppers.

Notes:
1. I used chicken thighs that had the thigh portion only, without the leg part. This way you get more pieces but you can use the entire thigh-leg cuts too. Use thighs with skin as the skin helps the chicken turn out more juicy and flavourful.
2. Cajun spice mix is available in most leading supermarkets or well stocked gourmet shops. If it is not available where you live you can try making this dish with any spice blend like BBQ spice or Peri Peri spice blends. Go creative and use Tandoori masala too if you like! – the taste will be different of course but you needn’t miss out on the fun!
4. If you don’t have sweet soy sauce just add honey and increase the amount of regular soy sauce slightly. Skip the oyster sauce if you don’t have it but don’t make the mistake of substituting it with fish sauce at any cost!