It’s common to put a lemon in a chicken’s cavity before roasting to keep the meat juicy and infuse with a citrus flavour. We decided to do something different and this recipe gives chicken a delicious twist, ideal for the coming winter months.
What you’ll need:
1 whole chicken (free-range, grain fed and good quality please! I never do battery chickens and beware of those not grain fed – they often taste like fish.)
1 orange, sliced into quarters
2 cinnamon sticks
1tsp whole cloves
1tsp paprika
1tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)
1tsp ground cinnamon
1tsp honey
2T olive oil
20cm of string or sewing thread
rotisserie oven (a normal oven will do too, just cook as you would a roast chicken)
salt and pepper to taste
Here’s how: First up, push three orange quarters into the cavity of the chicken – you can slice them thinner if need be, whatever works for the size of your chicken. This sounds rather barbaric but once you get over it, chicken will never be the same! Next, push the cloves and cinnamon sticks into the cavity as well. The cloves will fall in easily but the orange and cinnamon may need some maneuvering around each other.
Rub the chicken’s skin with about 1T of olive oil, the paprika and cayenne pepper. If you have other spices you’d like to throw into the mix here, go ahead. Give it a good rub and massage, getting into all of the nooks and crannies but be careful not to tear the skin.
Use your string or thread to tie the chicken’s legs together to make sure the yummy stuff in the cavity doesn’t fall out. Rijk (my tripod carrier, dish washer, food taster, lighting manager and general hip attachment) got a little carried away and strung up the chicken as if it might make a run for it. On a rotisserie this isn’t a bad idea or bits start moving as it rotates.
Push the spit through the cavity and out the other end and secure firmly in place. Pop the chicken into your rotisserie oven and start it turning. (If you don’t have a rotisserie, get one – they’re great – or pop in into the oven in a baking dish at 220 degrees Celsius).
In the meantime, make your basting by mixing the remaining olive oil with the honey, juice from the remaining orange quarter and salt and pepper. Pour a glass of wine, set a timer for 30 minutes and make a salad, some potatoes or whatever strikes your fancy.
After half an hour, use a basting brush to lightly paint your basting onto your now-golden and still-turning chicken. Be careful not to wipe all the spices off. Give it another 10 minutes and baste again. After about five minutes, give the chicken a poke with a sharp knife on the thigh or breast. If liquid runs out of the hole, it still needs some more time. Keep checking at five-minute intervals and when a new hole doesn’t leak, it’s done!
Carve the chicken, pour another glass of wine and enjoy. The leftovers are phenomenal on sarmies the next day.
Yours in food
Leigh
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