Step 1: Making the Cilantro Paste
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- 1 garlic head
- 2 shallots
- 1 serrano pepper
- 1 lemon
- 1 cup cilantro
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 tsp Kosher salt - can substitute with 1/2 tsp table salt
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Preheat oven to 375° degrees Fahrenheit.
Roughly chop the shallots, Serrano chili, and 1 clove of the garlic. If you don't have a food processor you could finely chop all of the ingredients by hand.
Cut the rest of the head of garlic in half and reserve to stuff into the chicken later.
Zest and juice 1/2 of the lemon and add to the food processor. Make sure to keep the lemon to stuff into the chicken later. Next, roughly chop the cilantro. Then add the cilantro, ground coriander, salt, pepper, honey, olive to the food processor and puree for a minute or two until you have a fine paste. Scrape down the sides if you need to.
This makes enough paste for two chickens. If you are only making one chicken, put half of the paste aside. It makes a delicious base for a salad dressing. You just need to add a touch more honey and oil.
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Step 2: Preparing the Chicken
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- 1 whole roasting chicken (6 lbs)
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp Kosher salt - can substitute with 1/2 tsp table salt
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
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Spray your roasting pan and V rack with non-stick spray and set aside.
Gently slide your fingers between the meat and the skin. Try not to tear the skin; you are just trying to loosen the skin enough to slide in the paste.
Generously season the inside of the chicken with salt and pepper. Stuff the cavity of the chicken with remaining lemon and garlic.
Then pour some paste in between the skin and the meat, using your fingers to distribute the paste around. Then rub the chicken with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
Place the chicken onto the V rack and place into the oven to cook.
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Step 3: Roasting the Chicken
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After about 30 minutes, add the chicken stock and baste the chicken.
At the one hour mark, baste the chicken again and check to see how dark the skin is getting. The paste makes the chicken brown quicker, so if it gets too dark simply cover with tin foil before placing back into the oven.
Depending on the size of your chicken it will take 1 1/2 to 2 hours to cook.
When checking the chicken try not to puncture the meat more than you need to otherwise the juices will escape.
To check the chicken, look to see if there is any pink color left between the leg and the breast, if so then it is not quite ready.
Once the chicken is cooked, remove from roasting pan and allow to rest covered with aluminum foil for at least 20 minutes.
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Step 4: Finishing the Chicken
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To make the sauce, first pour off the juices and fat from the roasting pan, then skim the fat with a ladle or fat separator and reserve the juices.
Then add some stock or white wine to the roasting pan and over medium high heat, deglaze the pan.
Strain the deglazed liquid and the reserved juices from the resting chicken into a saucepan. Bring the sauce to a quick boil, season with salt and pepper if necessary and pour into a gravy boat, to be served with the chicken.
Carve and platter the chicken...and enjoy!
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Notes
The cilantro paste can be made ahead of time and will make enough for 2 chickens. If you are only making one you can use the remaining paste to make a delicious salad dressing, just by adding a little vinegar, honey and oil.
Comments
This colourful chicken was a hit! Not only did the paste look fun underneath the chicken skin it also really made it juicy. I'm not a big chicken fan myself but for a dinner party this is great. For twelve people I used two fairly large organic chickens. Perfecto mundo!
Esta receta tiene un sabor realmente bueno, la crema de cilantro que se le pone bajo la piel, impregna al pollo de un sabor unico, no es complicado, y es delicioso.
Simple and easy. Be careful not to tear apart chicken's skin when preparing it.
Since my husband & I are going to be alone for Thanksgiving this year, I decided to try out this recipe, using a small organic chicken. It was a great success! And the leftovers taste fantastic cold!
You mention the cilantro paste makes enough for 2 chickens, if I freeze the other half would it affect the flavor. Also could I brine the chicken in some salt and water for an hour or two before preparing to roast it. Or do it make a difference since I'm puting a paste under the skin to make the breast meat juicy.
I am always a fan of brining, I think it makes chicken so much better and so much more moist. I recommend brining a whole chicken for at least 2 hours.
As for the cilantro paste, you can try to freeze it and let me know, but I think it's best when fresh. But it will keep for a few days in the refrigerator. Hope this helps!
I want to add some vegetables like small red potatoes, onions and peppers so that I can make it a more balanced meal. When would I add the vegetables? And how long would I leave them in for?
The potatoes will likely need about 45 mins or so, depending on their size. You can add them in the last 30 minutes or so, and then when the chicken is ready you can take it out and let it rest while the potatoes finish cooking. At this point, I would also turn up the heat to about 400 to 425 °F, as long as there is still some liquid. This will way the potatoes can get a bit of color and soak up some of the yummy chicken stock.
You could also add some large diced carrots if you like.
What time should I be there for dinner? Ha Ha! Good Luck!
The chicken looks delicious. At this point I must confess that I was running low on groceries and didn't have the cilantro at all. But I had a whole chicken and decided to do an Indian village favourite, a whole chicken basted with just mustard oil and red pepper flakes. I added lime and a garlic head cut through the middle in the cavity and a bay leaf and a few thyme sprigs under the skin. I remember it used to taste delicious. And I just pulled my chicken out and set it for resting while the peppers, potatoes and onions cook. The chicken smells divine.
And you are still invited to dinner, Dawn.
Thanks Swati, your recipe sounds really nice. You should enter it in the "Test Kitchen" I would make it for sure.
rouxbe.com/recipes/text
Enjoy your dinner :-)
I made this tonight and my husband loved it. His only complaint was he wanted more of the cilantro sauce. I cooked a bigger than average chicken that took ALL the sauce, so there was nothing left.
Next time, I think I'll try this with chicken thighs to up the ratio of sauce to meat. My butcher sells chicken thighs so big they take about 75 minutes to cook. I think the sauce will have enough time to work it's magic. Do you?
Glad you liked the Chicken Charmian... Extending this stock is easy. All you have to do is double up on the stock at the beginning if you want more in the end. This sauce is really just a reduced dark chicken stock flavored (or enriched) by the drippings from the chicken, the cilantro paste and the garlic & lemon from inside the chicken. So don't be afraid to add some additional dark chicken stock in the end to add to the volume.
It would also work great for thighs, breasts, legs, etc...no problem.