Mexican-Spiced Chicken with Corn & Pepper Rice

Ingredients

• 4 chicken breasts
• 300 g long-grain white rice, rinsed
• salt and black pepper
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 0.5 tsp dried oregano
• 3 tbsp garlic-infused olive oil
• 3 spring onions, green tops only, sliced
• 200 g canned sweetcorn, drained
• 15g fresh coriander, chopped
• 1 lime, juiced
• Warm tortillas, to serve
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1 yellow pepper, diced
• Soured cream, to serve

Method

1. Mix the smoked paprika, cumin, oregano and 1 tbsp of the garlic-infused oil into a loose paste. Rub it all over the chicken breasts and season generously with salt and black pepper — spice rubs need salt underneath them, not sprinkled on top.
2. Heat the remaining 2 tbsp garlic-infused oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. As the oil warms, the spices in the rub will bloom against the hot pan — that's where the dusty raw-spice edge cooks out and the smoky, cumin-forward flavour wakes up. Lay the chicken in skin-side down and don't crowd the pan; if your breasts are large, work in two batches. All at once and the pan drops in temperature, water comes out, and you've steamed the chicken instead of crusting it.
3. Cook for 6–7 minutes per side, until the spice crust is deep mahogany and a knife tip slid into the thickest point comes out hot. Lift onto a board and rest for 5 minutes — the juices settle back into the meat instead of running out the moment you slice. Then carve on the diagonal.
4. Meanwhile, bring a pot of well-salted water to the boil — it should taste properly seasoned, because rice only gets one chance to take on salt. Cook the rice according to packet instructions until tender, drain, and keep warm.
5. Set a separate pan over medium heat with a splash of oil and sauté the diced red and yellow peppers for about 5 minutes, until softened and just starting to catch and char at the edges. Those dark spots are flavour — don't stir them off too soon.
6. Stir the peppers and drained sweetcorn through the hot rice. Add a good squeeze of lime juice, season with salt and black pepper, then taste and taste again. Adjust now — at the end, not at the table. The lime should lift the corn's sweetness without shouting.
7. Pile the rice onto plates, fan the sliced chicken over the top, scatter generously with the sliced spring onion greens and torn coriander, and tuck a lime wedge alongside each plate. Pass the warm tortillas and soured cream at the table.