Mix up your barbecue repertoire with this epic roast chicken! I’m talking perfectly juicy butterflied chicken, halloumi and lime-spiked corn on the cob, a lip-smacking peri peri sauce, a crunchy, zingy slaw and sweet potato wedges for good measure. Get stuck in.
Soak the corn (husks and all) in cold water for at least 30 minutes – if you can’t find cobs with the husks intact, you don’t need to do this. Soak 2 handfuls of woodchips in water for 30 minutes.
Drain the woodchips, then transfer to the smoker box and place on the left-hand side of the barbecue. Prepare the barbecue for indirect cooking using medium heat (190-230°C) and preheat for 15 minutes, or until the smoker boxes are smoking.
Mix 1 heaped teaspoon each of smoked paprika and dried oregano with
2 tablespoons of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar to make a paste. Using a sharp knife, cut down the backbone of the chicken and open it out and rub all over with the paste, getting into all the nooks and crannies, then place it skin side-up on the middle of the barbecue (on the indirect zone).
Prick the chillies and place them on the warming rack above the chicken with the unpeeled garlic cloves. Place the unpeeled onion and tomatoes on the direct (hot zone) next to the chicken, then grill with the lid down for 10 to 15 minutes, or until charred and soft, removing to a plate once done.
Scrub and quarter the sweet potatoes to make chunky wedges, drizzle with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with a pinch of sea salt, then line up on the warming rack. .Drain the corn, then place on the direct heat and cook with the lid down for 30 minutes, or until the husks are blackened, the wedges are soft and the chicken is crispy and cooked through, then remove it all to a board.
Meanwhile, make the peri peri sauce. Once cool enough to handle, peel and quarter the onion, peel the garlic and deseed the chillies (you can also peel off the blackened skin, if you like). Place it all in a blender with the remaining 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika and oregano, along with the honey, 3 tablespoons of oil and 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar. Blitz until smooth, then season to perfection with salt and black pepper and spoon into a serving bowl.
To make the slaw, scrub the carrots, peel the red onion and core the apple, then use good knife skills or a speed-peeler to very finely shred with the red cabbage. Place the mustard, apple cider vinegar and 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil in a jam jar. Pop the lid on and give it a shake, then season to perfection and pour into a serving bowl. Finely chop and add most of the herbs, then toss the veg into the dressing.
Dot the butter onto a baking tray and place it on the barbecue to melt. Finely grate over the lime zest, squeeze over the juice and mix together. Finely grate the halloumi onto a clean board. Peel back the corn husks, keeping them intact at the base, then roll each cob into the lime-spiked butter, before rolling into the halloumi.
Carve up the chicken and arrange on a platter, then finely chop and scatter over the remaining herb leaves. Serve with the cheesy corn on the cob, sweet potato wedges, rainbow slaw and peri peri sauce, then tuck in!
