Pot Roasted Chicken with Middle Eastern Rice and Lentils

In the colder months I am always looking for warming and simple one pot dishes to put in the oven and forget about until I am ready to eat. This pot roasted chicken with rice and lentils is just the ticket. I added lots of spices to the rice to add a background heat and then finished the dish with the crunch and color of pomegranate seeds and lots of chopped herbs. I am a little bit in love with my new Cole & Mason | Ashden Acacia Mezzaluna with Chopping Board  which is not only a beautiful product but also extremely useful. It matches perfectly with the other Acacia products and my Cole & Mason | Berden Acacia Carving Chopping & Serving Board is perfect for carving up the chicken.

Difficulty: Easy/Medium

Cooking/prep time: .5 hour prep and 1.5 hours cooking time

Serves: 6 People

Ingredients: 

For the Chicken:

1 whole chicken

2 tbsps olive oil

1 tbsp butter

1 whole lemon

For the Rice and Lentils:

400g wild rice or Basmati

4 onions

4 cloves of garlic

1 cinammon stick

2 tbsps cumin seeds

2 tbsps coriander seeds

½ tsp turmeric

1 can of brown lentils

3 tbsps dried cranberries

2 chicken stock pots or stock cubes

800ml water

To Finish:

Chopped coriander and flat leaf parsley

Minted yogurt (natural yogurt with fresh mint)

Seeds of one pomegranate

Flaked almonds

Drizzle of Pomegranate Molasses (optional)

Method:

1. Heat the oven to 180C.
2. Chop the onions into slices in half moons and the garlic into small pieces.
3. In a large cast iron pan, add the olive oil and butter and heat to a high temperature. Season the whole chicken generously and then brown in the pan on all sides – set aside and place a whole lemon in the main cavity.
4. In the same pan, now turn down the heat and sauté the onions until very soft and little caramelised. Add the garlic and sauté for a further minute.
5. In a mortar and pestle grind the cumin and coriander, then add the turmeric to the mix. Add to the pan with the onions and garlic, along with the cinnamon stick. Cook the spices for a further minute.
6. Add the rice and pan and combine with the onions and spices. Now add the dried cranberries and chicken stock, making sure the rice is covered by around 1 inch. Return the chicken to the pan and put a lid on the dish. Cook in the oven for 40 minutes with lid on.
7. After 40 minutes, remove the pan from the oven and take the lid off. Now add the tin of brown lentils to the rice mixture and cook in the oven for a further 25 minutes until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice and chicken cooked.

8. To serve, remove the chicken and place on Berden Acacia Carving Chopping & Serving Board carving board. Add the pomegranate seeds and the chopped herbs using the Ashden Acacia Mezzaluna with Chopping Board. Add a drizzle of pomegranate molasses and squeeze the lemon juice out of the lemon cooked inside the chicken. Finish with some flaked almonds and serve. The dish is great on its own but could also be accompanied by some minted yogurt and flatbreads.