Za'atar Chicken with Roasted Tomatoes & Chickpeas

Ingredients

• 8 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin-on
• 1 x 400g tin chickpeas, drained
• 400 g cherry tomatoes
• salt and black pepper
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp za'atar
• 1 lemon, zested and halved
• Warm pitta bread, to serve
• Chopped salad, to serve

Method

1. Heat the oven to 200°C/fan 180°C. In a large bowl, stir the za'atar, olive oil, lemon zest, smoked paprika and a generous pinch of salt and pepper into a loose, fragrant paste — bloom is happening the moment the spices hit the warm oil in the tin, so don't skimp on the oil here. Raw spice tastes dusty; oil-coated spice tastes of itself.
2. Pat the chicken thighs dry with kitchen paper — water means steam, and steam means no crisp skin. Season the thighs all over with salt and pepper before they go anywhere near the marinade.
3. Score each thigh a couple of times through the skin, then toss in the za'atar oil until every piece is glossy and well coated. Get under the skin with your fingers if you can — that's where the flavour wants to live.
4. Scatter the drained chickpeas, cherry tomatoes and crushed garlic across a large roasting tin in a single even layer. Don't crowd them — if the tin is tight the tomatoes steam instead of blistering, and you want them collapsed and jammy, not poached. Use two tins if you need to.
5. Nestle the chicken thighs on top, skin-side up so the skin sits proud of the juices and crisps properly. Squeeze the juice of both lemon halves over the lot, then tuck the spent halves into the tin to soften and sweeten as they roast.
6. Roast for 40 minutes, until the skin is deep mahogany and crackling, the tomatoes have burst and slumped into the chickpeas, the garlic has gone mellow and sweet, and the juices run clear from the thickest part of the thigh with no pink at the bone. The garlic is protected here by the tomato juices and oil — it won't catch and turn bitter the way it would in a dry pan.
7. Rest in the tin for 5 minutes so the juices settle back into the meat. Taste the chickpeas and tomato juices now — adjust salt if they need it. This is the moment to fix it, not at the table.
8. Bring the tin to the table. Drizzle the tahini in ribbons over the chicken and chickpeas, scatter the torn mint generously over the top, and serve with warm flatbreads or fluffy couscous alongside to mop up the spiced, lemony juices.