RECIPE: Stuffed Roast Chicken

[Santalcine]

OBJECTIVES

INGREDIENTS

CHICKEN • Moist, tender and succulent flesh/meat • Savory skin, crispy or not STUFFING • Delicious in itself • Imparts rather sweet and light fragrance • Provides substance and flavor in making gravy GRAVY • Flavorful, but not too thick • Assimilates effectively with chicken

Chicken and Butter Rub • 225 grams butter • Rock salt • Black pepper • 1 tablespoon olive oil • Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon • 2 cloves garlic, minced • 1 tablespoon thyme • 1 tablespoon rosemary • 1 1/2 kilograms free-range chicken, whole Stuffing • Rock salt • Black pepper • 1 tablespoon thyme • 1 white onion, halved • 1 red onion, halved • 1 lemon, halved Gravy • 1/2 cup apple juice • 1 cup chicken stock

PROCEDURE

A. CHICKEN 1. Heat oven to 220 degrees Celsius. 2. Soften butter in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper, and drizzle with half a tablespoon of olive oil. 3. Add lemon zest and juice, garlic, thyme, and rosemary to the butter rub. Combine well and set aside. 4. Remove giblets from chicken cavity and season with salt, pepper, and thyme. 5. Insert both halves of white onion, red onion, and lemon inside chicken cavity. 6. From the flesh of chicken, loosen and separate skin, under which 3/4 of butter rub is then placed. 7. Massage chicken with remaining rub over the skin. Drizzle with remaining olive oil. 8. Cook chicken for 1 hour, then baste with its juices and drippings. 9. Lower oven heat to 180 degrees Celsius. Continue roasting chicken for 45 minutes. 10. Replace chicken drippings from tray into another bowl. B. GRAVY 1. Heat tray with roast chicken fond to medium. 2. Add cooked onion and lemon stuffing onto tray. 3. Remove pygostyle, and wings and drumstick tips from chicken and add onto tray and cook for 4 minutes. 4. Crush contents in tray with masher. Add apple juice and roast chicken juices onto tray, and reduce liquid. 5. Add chicken stock and continue reducing for 18 minutes. 6. Stray and extract contents of tray on a sieve into saucepan. 7. Reheat gravy at low temperature as chicken rests. Serve immediately.