Chicken and Orange Pilaf

This flavour-packed chicken and orange pilaf is a perfect one-pot dish made in the 30cm Signature Buffet Casserole.

INGREDIENTS

1 ½ cups long grain basmati rice
500 -600g skinless, boneless chicken (preferably thigh or drumstick otherwise breast), cut into bite size pieces
3 Tbsp olive oil
Large knob of butter, 30g
1 large white onion finely chopped
1 medium carrot grated
1 cinnamon quill
2 star anise pods
3 thyme stalks
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp smoked paprika
Pinch of dried chilli flakes
3 cloves garlic, crushed
½ cup fresh orange juice
3 Tbsp orange marmalade
600ml chicken stock
Zest of an orange
Small handful flatleaf parsley for garnish
Toasted sliced almonds or pistachios (optional)

METHOD

Soak the basmati in a bowl of cold water for 30 minutes, then rinse well under cold water until the water runs clear and all the starch has been washed off.

While the rice is soaking, preheat your oven to 160 degrees Celsius.

Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in the Le Creuset 30cm Signature Buffet Casserole over a medium heat. Sauté the chicken pieces until golden brown then set aside.

Melt the butter in the pan and set over a low heat and add the onions, carrot, cinnamon, star anise and 3 thyme stalks and cook until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Put the lid on the buffet casserole for most of the cooking time to create moisture.

When the onions have softened, add the spices and garlic and cook for about a minute until fragrant. Deglaze the pan with the half a cup of orange juice scraping down any bits stuck to the bottom. Add the marmalade and cook until almost all the liquid has evaporated.

At this point add the rinsed and drained rice and toss to coat for a minute. Add the hot chicken stock and orange zest. Increase the heat to medium / high and bring this to a rolling boil and cook for exactly 2 minutes after it starts boiling (lid off). Put the lid on and put the casserole into the oven and cook for 25 minutes. Remove and let it rest for 5 minutes.

Fluff the pilaf up with a fork and remove the cinnamon, star anise pods and thyme stalks and scatter the chopped parsley over the pilaf along with any other chopped nuts you might like (optional). Serve while still hot.

If for some reason there is still liquid in the dish after it has finished cooking, set it on the stove top with the lid off on a low heat and fluff up until the liquid has evaporated.

Recipe and image courtesy of Drizzle and Dip