Mom’s Chicken With Turmeric Tahini, Chickpeas, and Onions

Photo copyright Jillian Guyette, courtesy of Agate Publishing

This easy sheet-pan dinner exudes exotic aromas and makes an exciting colorful presentation. It smells like the butter chicken I get from my favorite Indian restaurant. As it roasts, the sauce sets up on the chicken, giving you a thick, crunchy-on-the-edges, chewy-moist-in-the-middle texture—amazing.

Serves 4

• 1 (3 1/2- to 4-pound) chicken, cut into parts, or 3 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken parts
• Coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 cups Turmeric Tahini Sauce (recipe follows), divided
• 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 medium red onion, thinly sliced, divided
• 1 tablespoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Coarsely chopped leaves from 1/2 bunch cilantro
• 1/4–1/2 teaspoon hot sauce

Rub the chicken pieces with a generous amount of salt and pepper and put in a large zip-top plastic bag with 1 cup of the tahini sauce. Seal the bag, leaving one corner open about 1/2 inch. Massage the bag to coat all of the chicken pieces with sauce, then squeeze as much air as you can out of the bag and seal the bag completely. Let it sit out for 30 minutes, or overnight in the refrigerator.