Curry Roasted Chicken

I love roasting chicken, not only is it delicious, but it's actually easy to make a roast chicken, just flavour it and chuck it into the oven while you can spend some time with the kids. Plus you can do loads of things with leftover chicken roasts and even make delicious stock using the leftover bones. This is a recipe I came up with after seeing a recipe on Her World cookbook.

Recipe: Curry roasted Chicken  adapted from Her world cookbook special edition volume 77

1200- 1400g chicken
8 fat cloves of garlic
1/2 small onion or a shallot
8 curry leaves
2 tbsp ghee
2 tbsp curry powder ( I used Maldivian roasted curry powder)

For the sauce :
2 tbsp plain flour
water or stock, about 1 cup  or 1 1/2 cups

1. Trim off any excess fat and clean your chicken. I prefer to keep the skin on, especially when roasting chicken. Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel. season well with salt.

2. Place your onion, garlic and curry leaves with a tablespoon of water in a food processor or blender and process to a paste.

3. Lift the skin of the breast piece of the chicken spoon in the onion paste and massage it in. Do the same for the thigh, and even rub some inside the cavity.

4. Brush your chicken with ghee, and rub the curry powder so that it covers the whole chicken. Use dry curry powder, not a paste.

5. Preheat your oven to gas mark 6 and then place the chicken in, breast side up and roast 20 minutes, then bring the heat down to Gas mark 4-5 and then roast till chicken is cooked and juices run clear from the leg and thigh joint. Juices run clear means there shouldn't be blood when you prick the meat not the chicken should dry up and get hard!. Baste the chicken with the cooking juices that form at the base of the pan.

6. Chicken should be done in about 45 minutes, depending on the chicken. 

7. Place the chicken on a chopping board or wire rack over the tray you cooked the chicken in cover with foil and leave to rest for 15 minutes.

 

Cut for your choice of serving portions.  Drain off most of the oil ( ghee) in the baking tray, reserving just about 2 tbsp of oil in it. Place tray on stove top, add 2 tbsp flour and whisk till the flour and oil are mixed well and form a roux. Add chicken stock or water and scrap the bottom to remove the little bits and pieces stuck at the bottom.  Use about 1 cup of chicken stock or water.  Cook till the sauce becomes thick. Taste adjust salt to suit your taste.

Serve with the chicken with the sauce along with rice and a nice salad.

Enjoy!!!!