Coq au Coco – Chicken in Coconut

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 4 chicken legs or 1 whole chicken, quartered
• 2 tbsp curry powder
• possibly salt and pepper
• 200 ml chicken stock
• 400 ml coconut milk, unsweetened
• 1 head of broccoli (approx. 300 g each)
• 1 red bell pepper(s)
• 1 carrot(s)
• 125 g basmati
• salt water
• some cornstarch to bind
• possibly peanut butter
• possibly peanuts

Instructions

Working time approx. 15 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 45 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Wash the chicken, pat dry, and season with salt, pepper, and curry powder (I use a sweet and spicy curry mix). Combine the broth and coconut milk in a large, deep roasting pan, season with salt and pepper (add a little more curry powder if desired). Add the chicken pieces to the sauce and braise in the oven for 45 minutes. Brush the skin occasionally with the sauce. In the meantime, wash the vegetables and peel the carrot. Divide the broccoli into florets, cut the bell pepper into 2-cm diamond-shaped pieces, and slice the carrot. Add the vegetables to the roasting pan about 20 minutes before the end of the cooking time. To do this, I first remove the chicken pieces, then add the vegetables to the sauce and place the chicken pieces on top. Five minutes before the end of the cooking time, turn on the grill if necessary to ensure the chicken gets nice and crispy. Remove the chicken from the roasting pan and season the sauce to taste, if desired, and thicken with a little cornstarch (if desired). For an alternative, melt 3 tablespoons of peanut butter in the sauce and garnish the finished dish with roasted, chopped peanuts. Cook the basmati rice in salted water according to the package instructions and serve with the chicken, vegetables, and sauce.