Charred Chicken & Hannah Sweet Potatoes w/ Avocado Salad

Gung hay fat choy! 

Chinese New Year is today. Why not ring in the Year of the Rooster with some good-luck oranges and auspicious chicken thighs?

Chef Nate Appleman's low-fat recipe for charred chicken and sweet potatoes appeared in Bon Appetit this month, and is adapted here for paleo.

His diet philosophy is to eat in moderation, not deprivation ~ a good New Year’s resolution to aspire to.

My Paleo Marin: 3.5 Persimmons*

Note: Chicken marinates for 1-12 hours ahead of cooking.

Ingredients for Salad Topping:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 medium avocado, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1/2 cup chopped Castelvetrano olives (no pits)
1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted
Salt to taste

Ingredients for Main Dish:

4 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
Kosher salt 
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2-4 garlic cloves, pressed through garlic press

2 Hannah sweet potatoes, scrubbed and pricked with fork

2 large sprigs rosemary

2 blood oranges or 2 Cara Cara oranges, one thinly sliced and one cut in wedges.

Directions for Salad Topping:

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Cover and chill until ready to serve with the chicken.

Directions for Main Dish:

1. Put chicken pieces in medium bowl and add sprinkling of salt. Add the olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic cloves. Mix well. Cover and put in fridge for at least 1 hour or up to 12 hours.

2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Bake the sweet potatoes on a baking sheet for about 1 hour, or until cooked through. Set aside.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a cast iron frying pan over medium-high heat. Place the thighs skin side down and leave for 5-6 minutes. Skin should char but not smell burned. Transfer to baking pan skin side down and bake until cook through, about 18-22 minutes. 

4. About 1 minute before removing chicken from oven, add the rosemary sprigs to the baking pan. Remove baking pan from oven.

5. Reheat frying pan and add the orange slices. Gently fry each slice about 30 seconds per side; turn with tongs.

6. Arrange the chicken pieces on a platter. Tear or cut the sweet potatoes into large chunks and place around the chicken. Put the oranges on the platter, add the salad topping, and garnish with 1" cut rosemary sprigs. Squeeze orange slices on individual servings if desired.

Serves 2-4.

Recipe adapted from Chef Appleman's recipe here.

#paleo #chicken #sweetpotatoes #lowfat #goodfat #healthyeats #maindish #glutenfree #dairyfree #yearoftherooster #chinesenewyear #gunghayfatchoy

*My Paleo Marin Rating between 1-5 Persimmons

I try out these recipes so you don't have to (and modify them for Paleo where possible). The rating will reflect my opinion of the final result in terms of taste, ease of preparation, nutrition, and sometimes, cost.