This is the way they to eat roast chicken in France. By slipping a beautiful tarragon butter under the skin, you not only keep the breast moist, but all that flavour gets absorbed by the chickpea stuffing as well. Take the stuffing out after cooking and mix in the roasted garlic and some of the vinaigrette and those will be the tastiest chickpeas you’ve ever had.
mise en place
1 4-5lb chicken, giblets removed
Small bunch of tarragon, leaves roughly chopped
1 stick of butter, at room temperature
3 heads of garlic, halved horizontally
Olive oil, for drizzling
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 can 15 oz can chickpeas
2 red chilis, sliced
3 sprigs rosemary or thyme
1 lemon, zested
olive oil
Dressing
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp honey
4-6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
directions
Preheat the oven to 425. Season the inside of the chicken. Place the tarragon and butter in a bowl and beat until combined. Season with salt and pepper. Loosen the skin over both chicken breasts by gently pushing your fingers underneath it. Now push the tarragon butter under the loosened skin so that it covers the whole crown.
To make the stuffing, put the chickpeas into a bowl, season and add the chillies, lemon zest, thyme leaves and a dash of olive oil. Mix well. Spoon the chickpea mixture inside the chicken cavity and place the whole lemon at the entrance.
Place the garlic heads, cut side down, in a roasting tin. Put the chicken on top and drizzle with olive oil. Season the outside of the chicken with salt and pepper and cook 1¼–1½ hours, until cooked through and golden all over.
Remove the lemon from the cavity of the bird and spoon the stuffing into a large bowl. Place the chicken on a warm platter, cover loosely with foil and set aside to rest for 10–15 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare your salad greens.
Put all the dressing ingredients except the oil into a bowl and whisk well. Add a pinch of salt and pepper, then add the oil and mix until emulsified. Set aside.
Spoon the garlic out of the pan and squeeze the pulp into a sieve placed over the bowl of stuffing. Slice the roasted lemon in half and squeeze the juice over the garlic. Push the garlic and juice through the sieve with the back of a spoon. Mash the entire contents of the bowl with a potato masher, then add 1 tablespoon of the dressing. Mix well, then transfer to a serving bowl and drizzle with a little extra olive oil.
Add 2 tablespoons of the dressing to the salad, then toss, taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary, adding a little more dressing if needed. (Any leftover dressing can be stored in a screwtop jar in the fridge.) Serve immediately alongside the roast chicken and stuffing.
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