Easy Sheet Pan Sambal Chicken and Potatoes

If you haven’t had a chance to say, “Hello, how do you do?” to sambal oelek, you’re going to put your life into two chapters: “BSO” and “ASO.” Yes, you really will consider your life “Before Sambal Oelek” and “After Sambal Oelek.”

Now, sure, you may have found the love of your life, bought a house, and raised a family “BSO,” but that won’t hold a candle to your life “ASO.” Once you open that little jar filled with crushed red chilies, vinegar and salt, your senses will swoon.

Your eyes will roll into the back of your head. You’ll feel the most inexplicable smile on your face. And you’ll grin, and grin, and grin, standing alone in the kitchen with an open bottle of sambal in your hands.

It really is an ingredient that goes from “what’s that?” to “Oh, my God. I have to put on a pair of pants and drive to the store in the middle of a storm for sambal!” It’s perfect in scrambled eggs. It’s wonderful mashed with avocado. It brightens a salsa, and makes your queso dip leap out of the bowl in joy.

But let’s not overlook the obvious. Chicken and sambal are the perfect pairing. And when you throw colorful gourmet potatoes into the mix, you have a sheet pan recipe that makes a Wednesday night feel like a holiday.

So, spoon some of this magical ingredient into a bowl, grab your F.N. Sharp chef knife and get that cutting board ready for for some slicing!

Sheet Pan Sambal Chicken and Potatoes Recipe

Ingredients

2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil 2 ½ tablespoons sambal oelek (divided) 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil 1 lb. gourmet purple potatoes (halved) 4 boneless chicken thighs ½ teaspoon kosher salt ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Fit a rimmed half sheet pan with parchment. In a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, olive oil, 1 ½ tablespoons of sambal, and sesame oil. Place the potatoes on the prepared sheet pan and toss with ¾ of the mixture. Spread potatoes out over half the pan. Place the chicken on the other half of the pan, and brush with the remaining mixture. Bake for 20 minutes, and brush chicken with remaining sambal. Bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until chicken registers 165 degrees and potatoes are browned.

About the Author

Launie Kettler is a food writer and photographer who cooks big food in a small kitchen in northern Vermont. Her husband and cats are tolerant of the fact that she plays the same Wilco and Son Volt albums over and over while pontificating about the beauty of cumin.