Oven-Baked Chicken with Zucchini

How to fry the vegetables and chicken

1. Oven-baked chicken with zucchini is a tasty main dish that can go to the table in the same pan it was cooked in. A young chicken is great if you can get one, but a larger chicken or even half of one will do. You can also cook separate parts: wings, thighs and so on. For this dish we buy dark green and yellow zucchini, the youngest ones, which are firmer than the pale squash. They hold their shape when baked, although they cook a little faster. All the other vegetables are optional.

   

   Usually we fry zucchini and squash in vegetable oil, sliced into rounds. That takes a while and uses more oil. Since the whole dish will be baked, we fry all the zucchini at once.

2. Prepare the zucchini: wash and dry them, then cut lengthwise into four pieces. Young zucchini have no seeds yet; otherwise, remove them.

3. Fry the zucchini until soft and golden. Pour 1 tbsp of olive oil into a frying pan and heat it over medium heat.

   

   Put the zucchini quarters into the oil and fry for 2-3 mins, then turn them over and cover the pan with a lid. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Fry the zucchini, turning constantly, so they start to brown on all sides. During frying the surface will turn lightly golden, and the flesh should be easy to pierce with the tip of a knife. Transfer the fried zucchini to a plate.

   

4. Fry the other vegetables if you decided to add them to the dish. We added chili and onion. Peel the onion and cut it into thick strips, and cut the pepper into strips. In the leftover oil, in an almost dry pan, fry the onion and chili until the onion is very soft. It’s best to do this over low heat with the pan covered.

5. Prepare the foil-roasted garlic for the sauce. I recommend it, since it makes the chicken with zucchini even tastier. Cut the head of garlic in half through the cloves, drip 3-4 drops of olive oil onto the cut side and wrap the halves in foil. They will bake at the same time as the chicken.

   

6. Fry the chicken. If the chicken is frozen, thaw it, wash it and cut it into serving pieces. We cut a young chicken weighing 600-700 g into six pieces. Pour a little olive oil into the pan and heat it over medium heat. Add the chicken pieces and fry for 4-5 mins on each side until golden.

   

How to bake

1. You can bake the chicken and zucchini in any suitable dish: heatproof glass, metal or clay. We use a cast-iron roasting pan, which works great. Such cookware needs a little preparation before use, but it’s quick and easy.

2. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Brush the inside of the roasting pan with oil. Cut the fried zucchini into large pieces and put them in the baking pan.

   

3. Lay the chicken pieces on top of the zucchini, spreading them evenly. Spread the fried onion and hot pepper over everything. Season with salt and ground black pepper. If there is any olive oil left, drizzle it over all the ingredients. It’s also worth tossing them around a little. Finally, put the foil-wrapped garlic on top of the vegetables and chicken, or place it separately straight on the rack in the hot oven.

   

4. Put the baking pan into the well-heated oven and bake for up to an hour, judging by how tender the ingredients are and how well baked they look. Don’t stir the chicken and vegetables while baking: they should brown and bake, given that they have already been fried first. In that time the garlic in the foil should also become soft and roasted.

   

How to make the garlic sauce

1. When the chicken and vegetables are done, take the roasting pan out of the oven, carefully, as it is very hot. Unwrap the garlic, let it cool a little and squeeze the softened cloves into a small bowl with your fingers. Season the garlic lightly with salt and pepper, and you can add a few drops of lemon juice. Mash everything with a fork until smooth, add a little olive oil and stir.

Serving

1. Put the sauce in a small cup or sauce boat and set it right in the pan. Serve the dish at the table in the roasting pan, and you can sprinkle it with herbs. Use a spoon to move the chicken pieces and vegetables onto your plate.

   Don’t reheat the chicken, as this dish is meant to be eaten at once. If you like, you can make your favorite sauce instead; don’t limit yourself.