Ping Coombes’ baked honey and soy chicken rice recipe

“Welcome to your new favourite one-pot rice dish!” says Ping Coombes. “I have been looking at ways to add more fibre into my rice dishes to make them more balanced. What I ended up with is a dish that has flavour, texture and fibre from the lentils and sweetcorn.”

Baked honey and soy chicken rice

Ingredients:
(Serves 4)

5 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
1tsp vegetable oil
2tbsp butter
2 garlic cloves, crushed
300g jasmine or basmati rice
1tbsp chicken stockpowder
380ml water
160g canned sweetcorn
340g canned green lentils
20g chives, chopped, to garnish

For the marinade:
3tbsp pineapple juice
1tbsp honey
1tbsp light soy sauce
1½tsp dark soy sauce
½tsp sesame oil
½tsp five spice powder
½tsp ground ginger
¼tsp salt

Method:

1. Score the top of the chicken thighs a couple of times so that the marinade penetrates deeper into the chicken and place in a bowl. Add all the marinade ingredients and marinate for at least 30 minutes at room temperature or in the refrigerator overnight.

2. Preheat the oven to 180°C fan or Gas 6.

3. In a large ovenproof pan, heat the oil over a medium heat. Add the chicken thighs to the pan, skin-side down, and fry for five minutes to brown the skin. Flip the chicken over and pour over the marinade in the bowl. Cook for two to three minutes to reduce the marinade a little, then remove the chicken to a plate.

4. Add the butter, garlic and rice to the pan and give it a good stir, then add the chicken stock powder, water, sweetcorn and lentils. Stir again to distribute the ingredients evenly in one layer. Nestle the chicken thighs into the rice mixture, cover with a lid and bake in the oven for 35 minutes.

5. Remove from the oven and let it stand for five minutes before serving.

6. Sprinkle some chives on top, fluff up the rice and serve.

Rice by Ping Coombes (Murdoch Books, £26) murdochbooks.co.uk, is available February 12.