Black pepper chicken & lemon yogurt

Make pepper the star of the show with this flavourful dish. We’ve spatchcocked the chicken for quick cooking and to give the marinade maximum coverage

Prep:45 mins
Cook:30 mins
plus 1 hr marinating

Serves 4
Easy

Nutrition per serving

kcal 486
fat 35g
saturates 13g
carbs 7g
sugars 0g
fibre 1g
protein 34g
salt 1.1g

Ingredients

1 tbsp black peppercorns
5 garlic cloves , grated, plus 1 whole garlic bulb
1 tsp ground turmeric
2 lemons , 1 juiced, plus extra wedges to serve
1 ½ kg whole chicken , spatchcocked (see tip, below)
1 tbsp olive oil
400g Greek yogurt
small bunch of coriander , roughly chopped (optional)
peppered rice , to serve (see 'goes well with')

Method

Crush the peppercorns using a pestle and mortar. Add the grated garlic and ½ tsp salt, and mash to a thick paste. Stir in the turmeric and lemon juice, then set aside.
Sit the chicken in a dish, skin-side up, and evenly slash the skin all over. Rub the marinade all over the chicken so it’s completely coated, then cover and chill for at least 1 hr, or ideally overnight.
Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Transfer the chicken to a shallow roasting tray, skin-side up, and sit the garlic bulb alongside it. Drizzle the oil mostly over the chicken and a little over the garlic. Roast for 30 mins, then remove the garlic bulb from the tray and set aside. Continue to roast the chicken for 10-15 mins more, or until crisp-skinned and cooked all the way through. If you have a cooking thermometer, it should read at least 65C when inserted into the breast, and 70C in the thigh. Leave the chicken to rest, uncovered, for 10-15 mins in the tray.
Meanwhile, peel and squeeze the garlic from the roasted bulb into a bowl, then mix in the yogurt. When the chicken has rested, lift it onto a board and stir all the resting pan juices into the yogurt. Taste the yogurt for seasoning, adding a bit more lemon juice if needed. Slice the chicken into pieces and serve scattered with coriander, if using, alongside the yogurt sauce, peppered yellow rice (see recipe, below) and lemon wedges on the side, if you like.