Salt-Crusted Chicken
If you want to add more dairy free recipes to your repertoire, Salt-Crusted Chicken might be a recipe you should try. This main course has 1598 calories, 108g of protein, and 81g of fat per serving. This recipe serves 4 and costs $4.53 per serving. 8 people have tried and liked this recipe. Head to the store and pick up ground flax seeds, coarse salt, flat-leaf parsley, and a few other things to make it today. From preparation to the plate, this recipe takes about 2 hours. It is brought to you by Chocolate and Zucchini. With a spoonacular score of 92%, this dish is awesome. If you like this recipe, you might also like recipes such as Salt Crusted Branzino, Salt Crusted Whole Fish, and Salt-Crusted Fingerlings.
Servings: 4
Preparation duration: 30 minutes
Cooking duration: 90 minutes
Ingredients:
1 chicken, organic and/or from a source you trust, about 2 kilos (4.4 pounds)
300 grams (10 1/2 ounces, about 1 1/3 cups) coarse salt
1 medium bunch flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
500 grams (17 2/3 ounces, about 3 3/4 cups) all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons thyme, fresh if available, dried otherwise (other dried herbs may be substituted, such as rosemary or oregano)
3 cloves garlic, crushed with the flat of a knife blade
6 tablespoons ground flax seeds, or 160 grams (5 2/3 ounces) egg whites (from 4 to 5 large eggs)
Equipment:
baking pan
bowl
mixing bowl
wooden spoon
whisk
pastry brush
oven
cutting board
meat tenderizer
knife
Cooking instruction summary:
Lightly oil a baking dish big enough to hold the chicken comfortably. Set aside.If you're using flax seeds rather than egg whites, place them in a bowl with 100 ml (6 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons) fresh water, and set aside for about 15 minutes, until the water is completely absorbed and the mixture is gelled.Place the chicken on a work surface, on its back, with the neck side facing you. Slip your hand under the skin, starting at the base of the neck, and work gently to get your hand further in, lifting the skin from the flesh over each breast, and down over each thigh, without tearing the skin. Once the skin is loosened, slip in the chopped parsley, pushing it underneath the skin to cover the breasts and the thighs as evenly as you can.Place the garlic inside the cavity of the chicken. Using a piece of chicken string, truss the chicken as demonstrated in Peter Hertzmann's Preparing for roasting video at minute 2:30. Set aside.In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour with the salt and thyme. Add the soaked ground flax seeds or the egg whites, and 160 ml (2/3 cup) fresh water, and stir with a wooden spoon or a dough whisk until the liquids are absorbed. Turn out onto a clean work surface, and knead briefly until the dough comes together; it should be supple and pleasant to work with, not sticky or crumbly. Add a little water or flour as needed to adjust the consistency.Flour your work surface well, and roll out the salt dough into a circle large enough to wrap the chicken in it (I shoot for a diameter of about 50 cm or 20").Place the chicken in the middle of the circle and fold opposite flaps of the dough over the chicken to wrap it entirely. Press gently to seal; if it looks like the dough might not stay put, brush the seams with a pastry brush dipped lightly in water.Lift the whole thing carefully but with determination, and transfer it to the prepared baking dish. Place in the fridge until ready to bake -- you can leave it in for a few hours or overnight. If the salt crust cracks slightly here or there, don't worry about it; it doesn't need to be 100% airtight.Remove the chicken from the fridge and preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Insert the dish in the oven and leave it in for 1 1/2 hours (a little more won't hurt if the guests are late; just turn off the oven and leave the chicken inside).Remove the dish from the oven, and break the salt crust open with a meat mallet or the handle of a chef knife. Once fractured, the crust can be simply pulled open with your oven-mitt-clad hands (it's fun).Lift the chicken from the open crust, transfer it to a cutting board, and carve it. Discard the crust. Serve the chicken with the cooking juices, perfect roasted potatoes, and a green salad.
Step by step:
1. Lightly oil a baking dish big enough to hold the chicken comfortably. Set aside.If you're using flax seeds rather than egg whites, place them in a bowl with 100 ml (6 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons) fresh water, and set aside for about 15 minutes, until the water is completely absorbed and the mixture is gelled.
2. Place the chicken on a work surface, on its back, with the neck side facing you. Slip your hand under the skin, starting at the base of the neck, and work gently to get your hand further in, lifting the skin from the flesh over each breast, and down over each thigh, without tearing the skin. Once the skin is loosened, slip in the chopped parsley, pushing it underneath the skin to cover the breasts and the thighs as evenly as you can.
3. Place the garlic inside the cavity of the chicken. Using a piece of chicken string, truss the chicken as demonstrated in Peter Hertzmann's Preparing for roasting video at minute 2:3
4. Set aside.In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour with the salt and thyme.
5. Add the soaked ground flax seeds or the egg whites, and 160 ml (2/3 cup) fresh water, and stir with a wooden spoon or a dough whisk until the liquids are absorbed. Turn out onto a clean work surface, and knead briefly until the dough comes together; it should be supple and pleasant to work with, not sticky or crumbly.
6. Add a little water or flour as needed to adjust the consistency.Flour your work surface well, and roll out the salt dough into a circle large enough to wrap the chicken in it (I shoot for a diameter of about 50 cm or 20").
7. Place the chicken in the middle of the circle and fold opposite flaps of the dough over the chicken to wrap it entirely. Press gently to seal; if it looks like the dough might not stay put, brush the seams with a pastry brush dipped lightly in water.Lift the whole thing carefully but with determination, and transfer it to the prepared baking dish.
8. Place in the fridge until ready to bake -- you can leave it in for a few hours or overnight. If the salt crust cracks slightly here or there, don't worry about it; it doesn't need to be 100% airtight.
9. Remove the chicken from the fridge and preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Insert the dish in the oven and leave it in for 1 1/2 hours (a little more won't hurt if the guests are late; just turn off the oven and leave the chicken inside).
10. Remove the dish from the oven, and break the salt crust open with a meat mallet or the handle of a chef knife. Once fractured, the crust can be simply pulled open with your oven-mitt-clad hands (it's fun).Lift the chicken from the open crust, transfer it to a cutting board, and carve it. Discard the crust.
11. Serve the chicken with the cooking juices, perfect roasted potatoes, and a green salad.
Nutrition Information:
covered percent of daily need
