Gingergirl: Roast chicken with pilaf rice and salsa verde

Welcome to all about food. With this amazing weather, I am using every meal time to get out to the garden to eat – food always tastes better outside! This roast chicken is no exception…enjoy!

Roast Chicken with Pilaf Rice and Salsa Verde (serves 4)

A 3lb (1.5kg) organic or free-range chicken (depending on numbers and budget)

A few sprigs of fresh thyme

1 lemon, cut into chunks

4 whole garlic cloves

Olive oil

For the Salsa Verde:

2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

4 anchovies, optional

A small bunch of coriander, roughly chopped

A small bunch of parsley, roughly chopped

1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar

½ teaspoon of sea salt

The juice of 1 lemon

100ml of olive oil

For the pilaf:

A knob of butter

1 onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely sliced

The zest of a lemon

2 sprigs thyme

1 mug of basmati rice

1½ mugs of hot chicken stock (try to buy the best quality you can – if you don’t have some home made that is!)

* Heat the fan oven to 180ºc. Put the chicken in a roasting tray, tuck the lemon, thyme, and garlic cloves in and underneath the bird. Drizzle with a little olive oil and season. Roast for 20 minutes per pound plus a further 20 minutes until crisp and golden. Allow the chicken to rest for half an hour before serving.

* To make the pilaf, heat a large knob of butter in an ovenproof pan. Cook the onion and garlic until softened. Stir in the lemon, thyme and rice and cook for a minute then pour in the stock and stir well. Cover with a lid or cover tightly with foil to keep in the moisture then transfer to the oven with the chicken for 20-25 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed.

* To make the salsa verde: Finely chop all the ingredients that can be chopped. Put this mixture into a bowl and add the mustard and vinegar. Slowly stir in the olive oil and balance the flavours with salt and black pepper. I like to serve this type of food in large platters and bowls in the middle of the table allowing everyone to tuck in!

Contact Gingergirl

www.gingergirl.ie

email: [email protected]

Gingergirl aka Helen Keown is an artisan food producer who produces a range of handmade luxury jams, preserves and chutneys.