Danielle Alvarez recipe: Sweet & spicy apricot harissa chicken drumsticks

This simple tray bake has wonderful, sweet, spicy and sour flavours — a favourite combination for chicken, and like a more adult version of barbecued chicken. Serve with rice or potatoes and salad for a delicious, easy meal.

Harissa, a north African chilli paste, adds tremendous depth and is wonderfully spicy, without knocking your head off. You’ll find it in most grocery stores these days. It’s often sold in a squeezy metal tube or a glass jar, making it easy to use just a little at a time.

Ingredients

2kg chicken drumsticks

salt

5 garlic cloves, peeled and finely grated

zest of 1 lemon

⅓ cup apricot jam (see note)

¼ cup white wine vinegar

2 tbsp harissa paste

2 tsp smoked paprika

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 brown onions, cut into wedges

Method

Step 1 Preheat your oven to 240C (475F) conventional (220C/425F fan-forced).

Step 2 Season the chicken drumsticks with salt and set aside.

Step 3 In a large bowl, mix together the garlic, lemon zest, apricot jam, vinegar, harissa, paprika and olive oil. Add the chicken and onion and toss together.

Step 4 Transfer the mixture to a baking tray lined with baking paper, ensuring all the drumsticks fit together snugly. (This is important – if the drumsticks are too spread out, everything just burns.)

Step 5 Bake for 45 minutes, basting the chicken with the pan juices after 30 minutes.

Step 6 Allow to rest for a couple of minutes before serving.

Note

You can replace the apricot jam with honey.

Serves 4-6

Made Simple by Danielle Alvarez, photography by Lean Timms, $45, Murdoch Books