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Saturday, July 28, 2012
Herb Roasted Chicken with Brussels Sprouts, Shallots, and Lots of Garlic
Back when I
was 15 and just learning to cook, my girlfriends stepfather showed me a
roasting pan I had never seen before. The pan and lid were made from terra
cotta and the bottom half was glazed on the inside to prevent staining. This
pan made the most amazing roasted chicken I had ever eaten, and I’ve been
searching for one for 10 years now. Fast forward to 2 days ago… my fiancée
calls me from World Market in Fort Myers, FL and tells me she found one.
Completely matching my description, and it even said made in Portugal on the
bottom (where this style of roaster was invented and to my knowledge the only
place that still makes them this way).
Naturally,
I decided, lets make that chicken I haven’t had in 10 years. So here it is, my
version of delicious herb roasted chicken in a terra cotta roaster.
Ingredients:
1 whole
roasting chicken- Any size will do. (substitute Cornish game hens)
Chicken
Seasoning:
1 tsp sea salt
1
tsp Caraway seed
1
tsp Dried rosemary
1
tsp onion powder
1
tsp black pepper
1/2lb
washed Brussels sprouts
2 shallots-
Roughly chopped
2 cloves
elephant garlic- sliced into 1/8in thick slices
1.
If you are lucky enough to have one of the pans
I mentioned above, soak it in water for about 15 to 20 minuets while you do the
prep work on the vegetables.
2.
Combine all of the chicken seasoning ingredients
in a food processor or coffee grinder and combine thoroughly. Set the seasoning
aside.
3.
Remove the chicken from the package and be sure
to remove the gizzards and chitlins from inside (heart,liver,etc). It seems
like common sense but if you are in a rush its easy to forget.
4.
Place the chicken in the pan, and stuff with the
Brussels sprouts. They wont all fit inside, so put the remainder between the
feet.
5.
Season the chicken thoroughly (about half of the
seasoning) and set the rest aside for later.
6.
Using your fingers, slide the slices of garlic
between the skin and the meat of the breasts and drumsticks. Place the leftover
garlic slices on the outside of the chicken.
7.
VERY IMPORTANT- DO NOT PREHEAT THE OVEN. Putting
a cold wet clay roaster in a hot oven will cause it to explode, ruining not
only your food, but your investment in the roaster. Although they are fairly
inexpensive, terra cotta roasters are very hard to come by and should be
treated like gold.
8.
Place the roaster on the middle rack and set the
oven to 250*F
9.
While the oven warms up, set a deep baking sheet
or shallow pan beneath the roaster. Fill it about halfway with water. This will
keep the humidity up in the oven, and keep your roaster from absorbing any
juices from the chicken.
10. Cook
the chicken for about 45 minuets at 250*F, then increase the temp to 375*F.
Cook the chicken for another hour.
11. Being
very careful not to splash any juices, take the chicken out of the oven and let
stand for at least 15minuets before serving.
12. VERY
IMPORTANT!- No peaking. Don’t open the pan even once during the cooking
process, or while its standing. The moisture is trapped inside the cooker and keeps
the chicken from drying out.
So some of you
are saying, “but Chris, I don’t have a terra cotta roasting pan, and I don’t know
where to get one”. That’s ok, because up until 2 days ago I didn’t either. Use a
normal roasting pan with a lid and a rack inside. Put a small amount of water
on the inside of the pan under the rack, and be sure to put the bird on the
rack itself. Then, put the lid on, and seal it tight with some tinfoil. It sounds
like a cheap way out, but it does the trick. Also be sure to put the pan full
of water underneath the roasting pan regardless of what kind of pan you use. It’s
an old baking trick that works wonders for anything you put in the oven.
Bon
Appetit! And check out my next post for the side dishes that went with this
meal. The poblano sauce will blow your mind!
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