One-Pan Paprika Chicken With Lentils, Squash and Daqa

By Yotam Ottolenghi

Published Feb. 19, 2023

One-Pan Paprika Chicken With Lentils, Squash and Daqa
Chris Simpson for The New York Times. Food stylist: Maggie Ruggiero. Prop stylist: Pamela Duncan Silver.
Total Time
About 1½ hours
Rating
5(1,547)
Comments
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This oven bake requires minimal effort and is very much a meal in itself. Daqa is a vinegar-based condiment, most commonly used when making the much-loved Egyptian koshari, a hearty dish of rice, pasta and lentils. Daqa is a nifty way to brighten stews, braises and anything that needs an acidic lift. Feel free to swap out the kabocha squash for root vegetables, such as sweet potato or celery root, and serve the whole thing with nothing more than a leafy green salad.

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Ingredients

Yield:6 servings
  • 6bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 2¼ pounds)
  • ¾pound skin-on kabocha squash, seeds removed, cut into about 6 (1-inch-thick) wedges
  • 1tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons ground sweet paprika
  • 3tablespoons olive oil
  • Fine sea salt
  • 2small yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced
  • 3garlic cloves, minced
  • 1teaspoon cumin seeds, lightly toasted
  • 8ounces/1 heaping cup (uncooked) French green lentils, rinsed
  • 2cups chicken stock
  • ¾cup sour cream
  • ¼cup finely chopped chives
  • 3tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill, plus 1 tablespoon picked leaves for serving
  • 3tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • ½teaspoon granulated sugar
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

583 calories; 34 grams fat; 10 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 15 grams monounsaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 38 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 33 grams protein; 971 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat the oven to 450 degrees.

  2. Step 2

    In a large bowl, mix together the chicken, squash, 1 tablespoon paprika, 1 tablespoon oil and 1 teaspoon salt; set aside.

  3. Step 3

    Place the onions, 2 garlic cloves, ½ teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon salt and the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and 2 teaspoons paprika in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish and mix to combine. Roast for 10 minutes, stirring halfway, until the onions are lightly colored. Stir in the lentils, chicken stock and 1 cup of water. Arrange the squash wedges and the chicken, skin-side up, on top and roast for another 20 minutes, until the chicken skin is deeply golden. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees and cook for another 40 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the squash is nicely softened.

  4. Step 4

    Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the sour cream, chives and dill; set aside.

  5. Step 5

    To make the daqa, mix the remaining garlic and cumin with the vinegar, sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt and 2 tablespoons of water.

  6. Step 6

    When ready, remove the bake from the oven and top with spoonfuls of the sour cream mixture. Pour over the daqa and sprinkle with the extra dill. Serve hot, straight out of the baking dish.

Ratings

5 out of 5
1,547 user ratings
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Comments

tinyloop

This is fantastic. Best thing I’ve made in a while. I reduced the heat to 400 rather than 350 (in my experience Ottolenghi recipes tend to need more heat or more time than recommended), and next time I’ll omit the cup of water (lentils were soup rather than side), but the whole family devoured it all.

kevin s.

The daqa is the condiment made in step 5 from the vinegar, water, cumin, garlic, sugar. I toast my cumin seeds and pulverize them in a mortar a pestle. Liquify in blender.

Fran

I concur on omitting the extra cup of water added with the lentils. Didn't seem like it needed it, it had too much liquid and I had to serve with a slotted spoon. I'd say either omit the cup of water or add more lentils (+1/2 cup?) since the lentil to onion ratio seemed to be heavy on the onion.

Matthieu

One of my family's favorite dinners, the flavors and textures are awesome!

Delicious! (With some modifications)

I made this tonight and it was absolutely superb! I read the comments and made the following changes: - I added Berbere seasoning to the cut up squash and chicken in the bowl - For the first part, when you roast the onion and garlic I kept the onion slices thick and sliced the garlic instead of mincing it- this was to prevent it from burning - When adding the broth and lentils I added 2 cups of broth but didn’t add a cup of water- the amount of liquid was perfect - After turning the temp down to 350 F I cooked the dish for 25-30 min instead of 40 min- if id done the full time it would have been completely overcooked - when I checked the chicken with a meat thermometer it was well over 175 F - I used Greek yogurt instead of sour cream and it was great- I also added fresh cilantro to the yogurt because I love it (but I know it’s divisive) - I made a pot of couscous using another cup of broth and a pinch of turmeric and served everything in top of the couscous End result- heaven in a meal!

Hazel

This was great and both my partner and I truly enjoyed it. I did make the recipe more complicated than the original. 1. Sear the chicken before mixing with squash. 2. Sauté the onion with spices in a pan, adding salt and pepper. Then transferred to the baking sheet. 3. Reduced the temperature to 400 F instead of 350 F. With the chicken on top of the stew and the skin side up, the seared skin was still crispy at the end of the roast. Truly amazing. The lentil and onion were for me the best part of the dish. We couldn’t stop eating it.

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