Chicken proves itself as the ultimate traybake hero in John Gregory-Smith's latest culinary collection, offering a passport to global flavours with minimal fuss. The acclaimed chef presents three distinct recipes that transform simple ingredients into vibrant, weeknight-friendly feasts, each drawing inspiration from different corners of the world.
Mediterranean-Inspired Feta and Olive Chicken Meatballs
Kicking off the international journey are these eastern Mediterranean chicken meatballs, bursting with sharp, savoury notes. Blitzed chicken is combined with crumbled feta, black olives, spring onions, garlic, and Turkish pepper flakes, then rolled into juicy spheres. They bake in a rich tomato sauce infused with more pepper flakes and oregano, resulting in a dish that's both light and deeply flavourful. Perfect served with salad, pasta, or a jacket potato, these meatballs also make for an epic desk lunch the following day.
Recipe Details: Feta-Licious Chicken Meatballs
Preparation: 15 minutes
Cooking: 15 minutes
Serves: 4
For the meatballs:
- 600g chicken breasts or minced chicken
- 150g feta
- 50g black pitted olives
- 4 spring onions, trimmed and roughly chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled
- 2 tbsp tomato puree
- 2 tsp Turkish pepper flakes
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- Salt and pepper
For the sauce:
- 680g tomato passata
- 2 tsp Turkish pepper flakes
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 50g feta
- 1 small handful finely chopped parsley leaves
Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6. Process the chicken with all meatball ingredients until smooth, then form into 16 balls. Swirl some passata in a roasting tin, mix the rest with seasonings, arrange meatballs, cover with sauce, and bake for 12-15 minutes until cooked. Crumble feta and scatter parsley to serve.
Korean-Inspired Garlic Chicken and Potato Traybake
Next, a Korean-inspired creation reimagines the traditional dakdori tang stew as a convenient traybake. Chicken thighs and onions roast alongside halved baby potatoes, all bathed in a lip-smacking sauce made from gochujang paste, dark soy sauce, rice wine, and sesame oil. The result is a deeply savoury, garlicky dish where the potatoes soak up every drop of flavour, offering a comforting midweek meal with an exotic twist.
Recipe Details: Seoulful Korean Garlic Chicken
Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking: 1 hour 10 minutes
Serves: 4
- 4 tbsp gochujang paste
- 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 3 tbsp rice wine
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp caster sugar
- 4-5cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 1kg skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
- 250ml hot chicken stock
- 2 onions, peeled and roughly chopped
- 8 garlic cloves, peeled
- 650g baby potatoes, halved
- 4 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced
- 2 tsp toasted sesame seeds
Heat oven to 220C (200C fan)/425F/gas 7. Whisk gochujang, soy, rice wine, sesame oil, sugar, and ginger. Coat chicken with three tablespoons, mix rest with stock. Combine chicken, onions, garlic, potatoes, and sauce in a tin, cover with foil, roast 30 minutes. Uncover, reduce heat to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6, roast 30-40 minutes until golden. Garnish with spring onions and sesame seeds.
Persian-Style Saffron Chicken and Rice
Completing the trio is a Persian-style saffron chicken and rice traybake, perfumed with cardamom and spices. Inspired by zereshk polo ba morgh, this simplified version cooks chicken thighs atop basmati rice in a saffron-infused stock, allowing the grains to absorb all the sunny, aromatic flavours while crisping at the edges. Garnished with barberries or pomegranate seeds, pistachios, and coriander, it's an exquisite dish that brings weekend-worthy elegance to any dinner table.
Recipe Details: Persian-Style Saffron Chicken Rice
Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking: 55 minutes
Serves: 4
- 1 pinch saffron
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
- 3 tbsp tomato puree
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Juice of 1 orange
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp turmeric
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- Salt and pepper
- 500ml hot chicken stock
- 1kg skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
- 250g basmati rice
- 3 cardamom pods, bashed open
- 1 handful barberries or pomegranate seeds
- 10g pistachios, roughly chopped
- 1 handful coriander leaves
- 300g Greek yoghurt
Heat oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6. Infuse saffron in boiled water, mix with garlic, tomato puree, oil, orange juice, spices, salt, and pepper. Whisk half into stock, coat chicken in rest. Place rice in tin, pour stock over, add cardamom, top with chicken. Cover with foil, bake 30 minutes, uncover, bake 20-25 minutes until golden. Garnish and serve with yoghurt.
These recipes are adapted from The Greatest Traybake Cookbook Ever: Weeknight-Friendly Traybakes with Weekend-Worthy Flavours by John Gregory-Smith, published by Penguin Michael Joseph. They showcase how chicken's adaptability can transport home cooks to the Mediterranean, Korea, and Persia with just one roasting tin.
