Chicken drumsticks and thighs – 8, bone-in & skin-on
Potatoes – 4, large
Vegetable oil – 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds – 2 tbsp
Curry leaves – 20
Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
Ginger – 2-inch piece, very finely chopped
Garlic – 6 to 8 cloves, minced
Eggplant/aubergine – 1, large and meaty
Bell peppers – 2, large (green, yellow or red)
Onion – 1, large
Green chilli – 2
Red tomatoes – 4, medium
Salt and pepper to taste
Fresh coriander leaves to garnish
Instructions
Wash the potatoes really well making sure no dirt is left behind as we are not going to peel them; keeping the skin on will add extra crunch to the dish. Cut the potatoes into 1 inch cubes.
Bring a pot of salted water to boil and add the potato cubes to it. Let it cook for 5 minutes and then drain and set aside.
Prepare the other veggies – cut the eggplant into 1 inch cubes. Cut the bell peppers, onions and tomatoes too into 1 inch cubes. Chop the green chillies finely.
Preheat your oven to 190 C / 375 F and place the wire rack at lowest level of the oven.
In a large skillet, add the vegetable oil. Once oil is hot, add mustard seeds and curry leaves. Let them crackle. Then add the chopped ginger and minced garlic and sauté for 30 seconds.
Then goes the turmeric powder and give a good stir. Now add the chicken pieces keeping skin side down. Sprinkle salt and pepper on top.
Let the chicken braise for 5 to 8 minutes on medium heat. Take the chicken pieces out and set them aside on a plate.
To the same skillet, add all the prepared veggies – eggplant, peppers, onions, tomatoes, green chillies and also boiled potatoes. Stir them to give a good mix. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Sauté them on medium flame for 5 minutes.
Now transfer all the sautéed veggies to a large baking dish along with all the spices (it must be big enough to hold all veggies and chicken together). Spread the veggies evenly all over the baking dish.
Return the braised chicken pieces on top of the veggies keeping the skin side up this time. Drizzle some oil on top.
Bake the chicken and veggies in the preheated oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until the chicken is cooked through. The internal temperature of thickest part of the chicken must register 170 F in an instant read thermometer.
Sprinkle some fresh coriander leaves and serve the tray baked chicken and veggies with a drizzle of mint-yogurt chutney.
Recipe by Flavor Quotient at http://www.flavorquotient.com/2017/01/indian-spiced-tray-baked-chicken-with-veggies/