“I created the cold-busting dish to totally blast away any signs of a sniffle for both little ones and big ones. It’s immune-boosting and free from gluten, dairy and nuts.”

One Pot Chicken by Georgie Soskin of Cooking Them Healthy

Ingredients - Serves 4-6, 20 minutes prep time

2 tablespoons oil

8 pieces of chicken thighs, drumsticks or legs

200g wholegrain brown rice

400ml water or vegetable stock– if using powdered stock use reduced salt

I large sweet potato cut into 1 inch chunks

2 cloves of garlic sliced

4 cm piece of ginger chopped

1 lemongrass

1 red bell pepper cut into small pieces

1 mild red chilli – optional and a good idea to test the heat of the chilli on the tip of your tongue before cooking

broccoli florets in small pieces

Method

-Pre-heat the oven to 180.

-Place a casserole dish (with a well-fitting lid) on a medium to high heat, add the oil and heat. Next season your chicken pieces with a sprinkling of salt and place in the pan. Try not to over crowd the pan - if you think it’s going to be a squeeze, do it in batches. It will take about five to 10 minutes to get a lovely golden brown crispness on to the skin.

-Take the chicken pieces out and keep on a plate while you assemble the rest of the dish. Remember at this stage the chicken is not cooked just browned – browning or getting colour equals flavour to your dish. If you are in a rush you can always brown your chicken pieces in advance. Cool down quickly in a single layer on a dish and just keep in the fridge until you are ready to assemble the entire dish – just add on about five minutes if using the meat from fridge cold.

-Add your garlic and ginger to the pan and gently cook for a few moments (if the pan is looking dry you can add a touch more oil) next add in the red pepper and sweet potato and stir. Then add in the rice and just stir around to get a light coating of oil then add in the stock. Place the chicken pieces on top and add in the whole lemon grass and chili so they are submerged in the liquid. Wait until it comes up to the boil before turning to a gentle simmer. Place the lid on top and cook for 30 - 35 minutes until the rice is cooked (but not dry) and chicken cooked through.

-Five minutes before serving add your broccoli to the pot and pop the lid back on – they will steam cook inside. Make sure you remove the lemongrass and whole chilli before serving.