Roast Chicken… with Green Chillies you say?

Suddenly it’s winter here. One day we were soaking in perspiration and blaming the afternoon sun and whoa, suddenly sky is covered with grey misty clouds and we are shivering to our bones. Out came the overalls, sweaters, scarves and we changed to hot, hot beverages at all hours of the day. Spices lose their subtlety and pronounce their presence in a curry with more resonance. It’s time for a season change meal, a meal to celebrate the transition…a meal that will rejoice in the bounties of last summer and the impending winter spectacles. It’s time to call some friends and share our fortune.  The menu is simple, roast chicken served with raw green mango salsa and green salad. Well, it isn’t that boring as the salt, pepper, butter and herb roasted chicken. Obviously I can’t be that predictable. I added a twist of my own, inspired from my own culture… my home. 

Roast Chicken… Bong Style

Ingredients:

Chicken - 1.5 kg

Garlic - 15 cloves

Green Chillies - 10 to 12 (Adjust if you can’t take the heat and scrape down the seeds also)

Fresh Coriander, very finely chopped - 1 cup

Mustard Oil - Half a cup

Salt - as per taste

Lemon, halved - 1 whole

Garlic, halved - 1 whole head

Procedure:

1. Make a fine paste of garlic, chilli, fresh coriander and two tablespoon of mustard oil. This is the marinade for the chicken.
2. Clean the chicken. Remove the wishbone or butterfly cut it (I am guessing you know the method or I will soon put up a tutorial for the same, you can also ask your butcher to do it). Do so if you want to avoid mess during carving the bird in front of the spectators.
3. Now rub the chicken with the marinade. Use mustard oil generously. Make sure to put marinade and oil under the skin also.
4. Put the chicken in a roasting tray. Put halved lemon and garlic head inside the cavity of the bird. Secure the neck and stomach cavity with help of twines.
5. Roast at 180 degree Celsius for one hour. Just check by cutting a little of the leg. Take out and rest while cover the bird with aluminum foil to keep juice intact.
6. Slice and serve. I chose green mango salsa as a side. You can find the recipe link below. You can also serve it with spicy cumin potatoes or aubergines cooked with fresh fenugreek.

Our friends loved it so much that I think I am going to serve this roast chicken for Christmas also this year.  What about you?

Green Mango Salsa: