Cycling V Cooking Chicken Thighs

We just had a Bank Holiday here in Ireland. For once, the weather was OK for it and I spent more time out on my bike in the Wicklow Mountains than I did slaving over a hot stove for your entertainment. However, that doesn’t mean I have nothing to show you. The truncated cooking schedule merely means that I had to get a bit more creative and prepare something that is really tasty but takes less time than it takes to descend from Glencreee to Enniskerry (that might mean something to a cyclist). So, here’s my take on Honey Soy Glazed Chicken Thighs. After a weekend of cycling, my own thighs are now too sore to mention.

This recipe is really easy to prepare. Most of the work is done when the dish is marinading in the fridge, giving you plenty of time to get the bike out and climb a couple of thousand metres or so.

Ingredients (for two hungry people)

• 6 free range, skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• 1tablespoon of soy sauce
• 2 green chillis
• 5cm (2″) piece of ginger
• 4 garlic cloves
• 6 spring onions
• 2 stalks of lemongrass
• Half a teaspoon of white pepper
• 1 teaspoon of rice wine
• 1 teaspoon of sesame oil

Trim any excess fat from the thighs. Cut three deep slashes across each thigh. This is to let the marinade permeate the meat and allow quicker cooking.

This picture is not necessary as the next picture shows all the choppables chopped.

Peel and chop up every thing else, except the stuff that can’t be peeled and chopped.

Ginger, Garlic, Spring Onions, Lemongrass, Chilli, all chopped.

Place the chicken thighs in a roasting dish and add all the remaining ingredients. Give them a good mixing to cover all the chicken with the other ingredients.

As with so many of my recipes, it’s hardly a recipe at all.

When the chicken is well coated all over, cover the dish with cling film and pop it into the fridge. You now have time enough to go for a 100k cycle up the mountains. If you are living in south Dublin or north Wicklow, that will allow a trip to Larragh and up the Wicklow Gap. If you are feeling strong, add in Turlough Hill before coming back home.

There was a lot of moving time for me while these just took on flavour. It seems unfair.

For the couch potatoes amongst you, leave the chicken in the fridge for 5 to 6 hours. Heat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF and cook the chicken uncovered for 35 to 40 minutes, turning a couple of times during the process. I used the 40 minutes to lie in an Epsom Salts bath. Very restorative.

I served mine with some quickly steamed bok choi. Delicious.

Serve the chicken with some appropriate vegetables and rice, taking the trouble to spoon over some of the delicious marinade that will have thickened during the cooking. The marinade adds a lovely extra dimension to the chicken. Don’t stint on it.

If you have done the cycling, you don’t need to worry about the calories.

Even if you haven’t taken the bike out of the shed, this is a fantastic way to enjoy some chicken. I use the thighs for this as they stand up well to the marinade. In fact, they stand up better than I do after all that cycling. Enjoy.