1 chicken, 4 meals Part 1

Chicken is one of the most versatile meats available and you can cook it in so many different ways to suit anybody’s taste buds. Whenever I buy a chook, I like to buy a whole one because it’s generally and I can get at least 4 different meals out of it.
In this series, I want to show you many ways of cooking a chicken so that nothing goes to waste.

When buying a chicken, I leave it up to you to pick a free-range, organic, or caged one. I would encourage you to buy free-range meat whenever possible, not only for the ethics but also for the fact that you are not digesting growth hormones, antibiotics and even arsenic that are often found in caged chicken. Obviously price is a factor but I am one to believe that we as consumers can vote with our money and the poultry industry will start adjusting their practices accordingly when they see that there is an increased concern about the ethics and treatment of poultry rearing. You can see this happening already with the increased selection of free-range chicken and eggs available on the markets, and the that the prices of free-range/organic difference is slowly becoming cheaper.

My recipe today is just a traditional roast chicken. I love stuffing and think that it actually helps cook the chicken faster because it keeps the cavity warm but if you’re too lazy or do not like the taste of it, you can always butterfly the chicken so that it cooks faster. It’s such a great recipe to have anytime and you can serve just about anything you like as a side dish. Don’t forget to save the carcass so that we can use it for another recipe!

Ingredients:

Stuffing:

• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 onion, diced
• ¾ cup diced veggies, which can include: carrots, celery, mushroom
• 2 tbsp nuts: sunflower seeds, slivered almonds or pine nuts (optional)
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp dried oregano and/or parsely
• 4 pieces of bread, toasted, diced in cubes
• salt and pepper

Roast Chicken:

• 1 whole free-range chicken, about 2kg
• salt
• 1-2 sprig of rosemary
• 1 head of garlic, peeled
• Stuffing
• Veggies to roast with the chicken, which can include: potatoes, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, butternut squash, carrot, beetroot, onion etc

Gravy:

• 1-2 tbsp corn flour or regular flour
  Salt
  Dash of white wine (optional)

Directions:

• Turn oven on to 190 C or 375 F

Stuffing:

• In a pan, heat up oil and cook onions until soft. Add the vegetables, nuts and spices and stir until cooked.
• Stir in the bread and add some salt to taste. Let it cool in pan.

Chicken:

• Take a bit of salt and rub it into the skin.
• With a small knife, stab the chicken all around insert of bit of rosemary or garlic into the punctured areas
• Pack the stuffing into the cavity as tightly as possible
• Place on a dish. You can put the vegetables in the same dish or a separate one to be cooked and put it all in the oven.
• Check after 1 hour by stabbing the inner thigh, if the juice is clear, it’s ready but if you see blood, keep it in the oven for a little while longer and check again.

Gravy:

• Take the juice left on the bottom of the pan and pour it into a small saucepan.
• Bring it to a boil. Add the salt and wine, and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in the flour until desired constancy. Serve in a separate bowl.

Serve with the roasted veggies, stuffing and some steamed greens.
Don’t forget to keep the carcass for our next recipe!

[photo courtesy of tummytales]

Related posts:

• Chicken Stock – 1 Chicken, 4 Meals pt II
• World Recipe: Indonesian Lamb Rendang (a Fusion of Bali and New Zealand)