Summer Chicken

[Busboy]

We always buy nice free-rangers, we always roast it with garlic, rosemary and lemon and it's always delicious. So, of course, we're looking for something different.

Will trade artery-clogging ice-cream recipes for a new chicken recipe that uses the whole chicken, and isn't too much hassle. We'd like not to have to look out of the 'hood for ingredients, but we have a bizarre assortment of stuff in the cupboard (almost anything for Indian, Italian or French) and can walk to Latino and Vietnamese grocers.

Thanks.

[jackal10]

Lots of ways:

a) Ballotine: Bone out the chicken, leaving wings and legs. Stuff with sausagemeat or a good forcemeat. Tie up in a cloth boil with stock vegetables and some leeks for an hour or so. Take out, unwrap, reduce stock (add some gelatine maybe), put into a nice dish, and allow to set surrounded by its jelly.

b) You can boil the chicken this without boning the chicken, and then you won't need to tie it in a cloth, but carving and presentation is different. You might want to coat it with chaud-froid sauce, for example (add cream to the jelly).

c) Tea smoked. Brine, then smoke outdoors over the BBQ. Take a wok, line with double foil. Put in 1 cup rice, 1 cup sugar, 2 Tbs tea, any other herbs or spices you fancy. Brine chicken for an hour.

Put the wok with the smoking mixture over the hot BBQ. When it begins to smoke put the chicken on arack over it. Cover with more foil (or the wok lid lined with foil). Leavefor an hour or so, maybe turn halfway. Shake the wok occaisionally or add more smoking mixture if the smoke starts to fade. Remove golden brown chicken to serving platter, and throw away the foil etc.

Edit: for "boil" read (in the modern way of thought) Hold at 65C until the internal temperature is 55C.

Edited July 16, 2003 by jackal10 (log)

[aliwaks]

here's a couple

butterfly the chicken, marinated in aleppo pepper (or what ever hot pepper you have), lemon juice, garlic & fresh mint...pre heat your BBQ so its nice & hot get a couple of bricks or a flat stone & wrap them very well in heavy duty aluminium foil .. grill the chicken underneath the bricks it will flatten out the chicken make the skin crispy & it should be really juicy

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Saveur has a recipe for a thai (?) style butterflied chicken that has you tie the wings to the legs and there are sticks involved\

have you tried any of these marinades (any of these can be roasted, grilled, etc.)

1 .: fresh cilantro, fresh mint, a shallot, 2 cloves garlic, sea salt dash or two of tabasco (unless you have harissa), cumin & lemon juice process to make a paste smear all over chicken

2. Garlic honey: process a couple of cloves of garlic into about a cup of honey...you'll only need about 3 tbs for a whole chicken but the rest can be used for a vinaigrette (excellent over really ripe tomatoes) , to brush on slamon

mix 3tbs of the honey w. some tamari & OJ or with olive oil & a dash of white truffle oil or w. lemon juice

3. lime juice, fish sauce garlic tiny bit of sugar

4. Bitter orange (at latino market mix 2/3 oj 1/3 lime juice) garlic,onion, cilantro & marjoram & sea salt

5. lavender, garlic, rosmary, thyme, black pepper & olive oil

[bloviatrix]

What about a mixture of soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, minced garlic and ginger and some five spice powder?

Rub the chicken with some of the mixture and then baste it every 10 minutes or so.

[Busboy]

Thanks, folks, for the good ideas.

Jackal 10, I'm one of the few people who will say with a straight face that I've been meaning to try a ballotine for about 5 years now...I think I'll try it this weekend when we're looking for something to make early Saturday for easy eating that evening, after returning from a concert, quite possibly in no condition to play with knives -- and when we can get the grinder out and make some good forcemeat.

Currently discussing aliwaks' bricked pepper (what is aleppo?) chicken, the lavender marinade and the and bloviatrix's soy/5-spice with the wife. Whichever we choose, I'm sure we'll be through the others (and more) before long. Thanks again.

Aside: I was once reading Saveur or some such glossy and they had a chef saying something like "show me someone who can roast a chicken properly, and I'll show you someone who has a chance of being a pretty good cook, someday." Anyone else struggle for years to be able to get the dark mean done while the breast is still juicy, only to discover a breakthrough technique or recipe (or, like me, have their SO/roommate discover one) that made all the difference?

Edited July 16, 2003 by Busboy (log)

[Holly Moore]

More basic than the others, but I've been eating and later cooking this recipe since I was 10 or so. Best broiled chicken I've had and easy to prepare. Perfect for the summer. Cornell Barbecued Chicken

[tommy]

larb.

[KNorthrup]

More basic than the others, but I've been eating and later cooking this recipe since I was 10 or so.  Best broiled chicken I've had and easy to prepare.  Perfect for the summer.  Cornell Barbecued Chicken

I've never seen egg in a bbq sauce before. What does it do?

[Basilgirl]

Beer butt chicken.

Never made it but heard it's good.

[slkinsey]

Anyone with special expertise on roasting a perfect chicken and a willingness to share their methods with the rest of us, please drop me a PM as we'd love to have you contribute to the eGullet Culinary Institute.

[Holly Moore]

More basic than the others, but I've been eating and later cooking this recipe since I was 10 or so.  Best broiled chicken I've had and easy to prepare.  Perfect for the summer.  Cornell Barbecued Chicken

I've never seen egg in a bbq sauce before. What does it do?

This is more a basting sauce than a bbq sauce. Not sure what the egg does. My guess is that it's an emulsifier that holds everything else together. Key word is "guess." Then again guessing is what got me through 5 credit hours worth of food chemistry.

[jackal10]

The fancy way to bone a chicken is to start at the wing (neck) end,and sort of roll the flesh and skin back, like turning a sock inside out, easing it away from the carcass with a small knife, Cut through the wing joints, and carry on the trning inside out process, then cut through the hip joints. The only tricky bit is not to tear the skin too much easing it from the keel cartilage.

Then bone out the thighs seperately. I think it looks better if you leave the wings and leg bones.

Any bits you accidently cut off can be just put back in the middle.

Alternatively you can cut all the way along the bottom of the chicken, and then just go down the sides. You may need to sew it back if you roast it, but if you tie it in a cloth to cook, it will keep its shape.

Brining is good.

Steingarten has a good discussion on how to get a turkey (or chicken) evenly cooked. Personally I prefer the low temperature/long time method, then browning the outside.

[polly]

Here is one of my favourite sauces to go with grilled chicken.

Can be served with hot chicken, or pour it over hot chicken and leave to cool to room temp.

SAUCE BOIS BOUDRAN

1 tbs finely chopped chervil

1 tbs finely chopped chives

4 tbs finely chopped tarragon

100g finely diced shallots

150 ml veg oil

50 ml white wine vinegar

85 g tomato ketchup

1 tsp woscestershire sauce

5 drops tabasco

salt and pepper

Whisk everything together, et voila.

Also really nice on fish, bread, grilled beef, potatoes etc