I would like to point-out that this recipe made my house smell AMAZING! Of course, that wasn’t the best thing about the meal, but it’s always a pleasant byproduct!
I have to admit that I’m usually pretty lazy when it comes to roasting a whole chicken, and I’m sure I’m not the only one (I’m talking about you)! The chickens that enter my house, 99% of the time, are entering already roasted i.e. I buy them that way. I actually used to roast whole chicken a lot more when I first moved to this country, for the main reason that we didn’t have much cash (since I wasn’t “legally” allowed to work for the first 6 months). Whole chickens are extremely inexpensive (almost too inexpensive, in-fact), with the additional bonus being that you can at least get another meal’s worth of leftovers out of them. I think the only reason people don’t buy whole chickens as much as they probably should, is that they don’t feel comfortable carving it, either before or after it’s cooked.
Have you ever stuffed clementines into a chicken before? No, me neither…
Chicken is so very easy to overcook, and most people do! The beauty with this recipe is that due to the way it’s being roasted, and the clementine/chicken stock combo, it’s EXTREMELY difficult to dry this bird out!
Wine time! I’ve already reviewed the Rendez-vous Chenin Blanc, but in case your missed it, let me catch you up on the story:
The founder of the Rendez-vous Winery is Larry Dizmang….actually…..Dr. Larry Dizmang M.D. (psychiatrist), as he is more formally known! The doctor – along with his wife Evie (a clinical social worker) – were the original founders of Folie a Deux (you’ve no-doubt seen the Menage a Trois label). He sold the winery (which had initially been converted from a former sheep ranch) in 1995, and at its peak was producing around 20,000 cases. It’s interesting to note that the name “Folie a Deux” is the medical term used to describe two people who share the same delusion. In this case, it’s making wine!
There’s a healthy helping of tropical fruit in the Rendez-vous Chardonnay, with pineapple, peach and mango dominating. In that respect, if you decide to give this recipe a shot, you could quite easily mix-up what you are stuffing your chicken with. Maybe throw-in some pineapple or apricots, for example.
There’s also a little residual sweetness in the wine, which found a perfect place with the honey glaze on the chicken, so feel free to apply an ample amount of honey-glaze to the skin of the chicken.
The Rendez-vous does see oak, but it’s in harmony with the cream, vanilla and butter-covered popcorn, and is easily balanced with the fruit. Finishes long.
Recipe for Roast Chicken with Clementines
Serves: 4 (or 2, with leftovers for the next day)
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour and 40 mins
INGREDIENTS
– One whole chicken for roasting
– 2 teaspoons minced garlic
– 6 rosemary sprigs (leaving some for a garnish)
– 4 clementines/tangerines , washed and halved
– 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
– 1/2 cup dry white wine
– 1/3 cup honey
– Salt and freshly ground pepper
– 1 1/2 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth
– String, to tie the chicken legs.
METHOD
1. Turn your oven up to 400F. Stuff the chicken with the rosemary, garlic and 4 of the clementine/tangerine halves (with the skin still on). Tie the legs together on the chicken with a piece of string. Squeeze the juice out of the remaining 4 tangerine halves, and place the leftovers in the roasting pan. Rub the olive oil all over the chicken. Pour the wine and tangerine juice over the top of the chicken, liberally drizzle with the honey and season with salt and pepper.
2. Place the chicken (uncovered) in the oven, and roast for 20 minutes. When 20 mins is up, reduce the oven temp to 350F, add 1 cup of the chicken broth to the bottom of the pan, and then cover the roasting pan with foil. Roast the chicken for 40 minutes, basting occasionally. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of broth to the roasting pan. Cover and roast for another 40 minutes.
3. Remove the chicken from the roasting pan, and place on a cutting board, leaving it to cool-down for 10 minutes. Strain the pan juices into a saucepan and skim the fat. Carve the chicken and serve with the pan juices.
4. For a side dish, I just cut a large eggplant on a strong bias (half an inch thick), threw it in a bowl with some kosher salt, black cracked pepper and olive oil, making sure it was well coated. Then, I placed the pieces on a grill, and flipped them a couple of times (making sure they have a cool criss-cross grill mark pattern) until they were cooked though. I finished them off with some freshly shaved parmesan cheese. A simple, but very tasty side-dish!
