Easy peasy chinese chicken

One thing that really annoys me about being in Glasgow during the week is not being able to get Stylist magazine. Not that they don't have it in Glasgow, just that I don't go anywhere that I'm able to grab a copy before they've all gone.

This week, fate was in my favour and I found a copy at the airport, with this great recipe in it: Chicken with plums and soy. So not only was I entertained on the plane home, I also had something to cook on Saturday night. Staying in a hotel all week might sound like fun, but actually I miss choosing exactly what to eat (Glasgow isn't exactly a restaurant mecca), and I also find the process of cooking very relaxing, and ultimately, very rewarding.

Photo from Stylist.. scroll down for my poor photography!

  This dish is probably the easiest chinese dish I've ever cooked, and has the advantage of being super easy to make as well. It's originally a Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall recipe, which I pretty much followed exactly, although I upped the garlic content (boyfriend is on holiday) and didn't time things so precisely.

Ingredients (serves 2)
4 chicken thighs
salt
pepper
slug of olive oil
3 plums
healthy splash of soy sauce
2 mild red chillies
3 garlic cloves
large chunk of ginger
chopped coriander

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Put the chicken thighs on a baking tray, skin side up, and drizzle over the olive oil. Season with the salt and pepper and bung in the oven for about 30 minutes. Turn once about half way through.

2. Meanwhile, slice the garlic cloves thinly, peel and slice the ginger, and deseed and chop the chillies. Once the 30 minutes is up, add these (the 'holy trinity of chinese cooking', according to Gok Wan) to the chicken, making sure they coat it. Put the chicken back in the oven for 10-15minutes.

3. Half and destone the plums. Add to the baking tray and splash over the soy sauce. Give it all a bit of a mix. Put back in the oven for another 10 minutes, until the plums are soft.

4. (I didn't do this step, hunger won!) Baste the chicken with the plummy-soy juices and then leave in a warm place for 10 minutes to marinade. Serve with the coriander sprinkled on top.

I served it with plain boiled rice and bok choi, stir fried with garlic in sesame oil. A very tasty dinner! The only thing I would change is to add a little bit of honey at the same time as the plums; I think because my plums weren't quite ripe it wasn't quite as sweet as I'd like.

not looking quite as pretty, but just as tasty!