Thursday, August 11, 2011

Family recipes 8: Joe's roast bird
















My lovely son-in-law Joe Vaughan isn't just a great guy, but also a fantastic cook! He and my equally culinarily talented daughter Pippa (see Family recipes 2, http://alamodefrangourou.blogspot.com/2011/05/family-recipes-2-pippas-pork-and-garlic.html )cook up a brilliant storm at their place. Here's one of Joe's succulent signature dishes, the best roast chicken you'll ever taste!
Ingredients
1 free range chicken, I large clove of garlic or two small cloves, crushed; Couple of sprigs of thyme (leaves picked), roughly chopped; Zest of half a lemon, roughly chopped; 3 anchovy fillets, roughly chopped; 50g diced butter; Rosemary, to stuff cavity; Lemon, to stuff cavity; Thyme, to stuff cavity; Olive oil; Salt and pepper
Method:
1.Preheat oven to 200 c.
2.To start, leave chicken in room temperature for half an hour and separate skin carefully from meat using fingers.
3.Put crushed garlic, chopped thyme, lemon zest and anchovy fillets in a mortar and pestle and bash in to a paste.
4.Add diced butter to paste and mix.
5.Carefully insert paste and butter mixture under the skin getting right in to all areas (wings, legs, back and front).
6.Stuff cavity with half a lemon, some more thyme and rosemary and then place chicken on a bed of thyme, bay leaves and rosemary in a roasting pan.
7.Drizzle with oil and season with salt and pepper.
8.Place chicken in oven for 20 mins at 200 c and then 180 c there after till juices run clear. Total time should be 1 hour.
9.Once cooked, bring chicken out and let it rest for 20 mins under loose foil.
10.Serve with whatever sides you want (pictured here: roast duck fat potatoes, steamed broccoli, sautéed zuchinni and a star anise jus!).

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