ROAST CHICKEN STUFFED WITH SPICED PISTACHIO NUTS AND CRANBERRIES.
Ingredients
1 large free range chicken (it is very easy to bulk up the stuffing if you are making this dish for more people.)
2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1 fresh red chilli de seeded and finely chopped
2 onions finely sliced
2 Tablespoons crushed coriander seeds
2 Teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 Teaspoons ground mixed spice
4 bay leaves
Zest and juice of 2 lemons
200g dried cranberries
100g Pistachio nuts
2 Tablespoons 30ml olive oil.
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Description
The garnish is the bright jewels of the dark red berries and the pink and green of the pistachio nuts against the crisp golden skin of the chicken. This could be served on a bright blue patterned plate from Morocco or Turkey to complete the image of the sumptuous jewelled chicken that would not be out of place at a royal oriental banquet.
The combination will mean that there is a balance of flavour that stimulates all the taste buds.
Method
Pre heat the oven 200° C/Gas mark 6.
Mix the finely chopped garlic and chilli with the thin sliced onions. In a pestle and mortar crush the coriander seeds and then add the other ground spices. Add the lemon zest and juice and the bay leaves and mix all together in a bowl with the dried fruits and nuts. Mix well with the oil and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Stuff the chicken with a generous amount of the stuffing. Any left over stuffing can be cooked in a pan on the stove and mixed with the rest when the bird is cooked Heat a little oil in a heavy bottomed ovenproof pan season the chickens on the outside with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Brown the bird in the pan on both breasts and the back. When lightly browned transfer the pan to the oven and roast until cooked.
Roast for 1 hr – 1 hr 20 mins or until the meat is tender and cooked through. Baste the chicken regularly with all the roasting juices. To check that the meat is ready, insert the point of a small knife by the thighbone and see if the juices run clear.
To serve spoon the stuffing out of the chicken and scatter the be-jewelled mixture over the roasted meat on the plate. Alternatively serve the jointed meat and stuffing on a large platter surrounded by roast potatoes or with a fresh salad of bitter and peppery leaves.
There will be lots of layers of different flavours within the chicken. The meat and the onions will be deliciously sweet. The dried fruits are both sweet and sour along with the lemon juice. The fresh chilli and the black pepper is hot and spicy.
Categories
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