Five Spice Chicken ...

This is a chicken for an easy dinner with an Asian feel ... splatchcocked with the skin loosened so that one can spoon an incredibly spicy marinade in between the breast, thigh, and leg meat and the skin. The chicken marinates for the afternoon (or four to six hours) and is then roasted on a bed of onions and garlic. This is a switch up on a Donna Hay recipe; she has one keep the salt and five spice powder aside from the marinade and have it as a sprinkling spice once the bird is roasted. I opted for the spices to be added to the marinade to really heighten the spiciness.

Five Spice Chicken

Marinade Ingredients:

⅓ c. dry semi-dry white wine (I used a Fumé Blanc)

⅓ c. Tamari soy sauce ( a gluten free product)

¼ c. peanut oil

1 knob ginger root the size of a walnut, minced

1 soup spoon of five spice powder

1 tsp. Kosher salt

Whisk the marinade ingredients together in a shallow pan that will hold a splatchcocked bird.

Loosen the skin on the chicken carcass and spoon some of the marinade in between the skin and the meat. Turn the bird in the remaining marinade to coat well.

Cover the marinating bird with plastic wrap and refrigerate for four to six hours.

Place the bird in a roasting pan on a bed of roughly chopped onions and several chopped garlic cloves.

Reserve the marinade and add a couple tablespoons of honey to it … whisk to combine and use it to baste the bird during the last half hour of roasting time.

Roast the bird at 375° F until the juices run clear. Baste the bird every ten minutes or so, after the bird has been in the oven a half hour. Overall cook time is about fifty minutes with a fifteen minute rest time under cover ... this for a three to four pound bird.

Serve with  fried jasmine rice. So ... while the bird roasted and the rice steamed, the rest of the fried rice ingredients got prepped. I'm loving the colors.

Keeping it simple was a good thing, steamed green beans with a red pepper flakes, shallots, and a sesame oil drizzle, and that bowl of fried rice. So good ... all it needed was wine and a light dessert ... later in the evening.

I hope you had a Happy Valentine's Day! Ours was mellow and relaxing ... with leftovers for lunch today!