For a long time, we were out of the habit of roasting chickens. We had roast beef, roast pork and roast lamb, but never roast chicken.
“They are so easy to buy”, we would say…”and the same price to buy a roast chook as a raw one!”
Oh how silly we were!
And oh how much we were missing out on!!!
But then one day……I did it anyway!
It was amazing!
Delicious!
Sensational!
Mind blowing!
You get the picture…
We never looked back! It is a completely different meal!
So….here are a few secrets…
Stuffing
It is so quick and easy to make your own! As a guide, I try to make sure it has an onion, herbs, something sweet (like dried fruit), something of substance like bread and nuts, something salty (bacon is AWESOME in it of coarse but I forgot to buy it this time) and a liquid to hold it all together. I normally blend it roughly in the blender, but have simply chopped it all very fine when travelling and without one. (Cook the bacon first if using)
It ends up a bit like this….
Seasoning
Then make sure you season your veggies and chicken!!!
Here I used a cocoa, brown sugar, smoked paprika, cumin and lots of salt kind of seasoning…
Gravy
I then made and onion jam gravy which was pretty yummy! The jars are homemade stock past and onion jam…
And don’t forget to add the pan juices to the gravy!
And it comes out a bit like this!
We had people over for dinner, so I felt like an idiot taking a photo at the table, but I wish you could have seen he whole meal, and the gravy! Or better yet, tasted it!
Next time I won’t be so polite, I promise!
Other Elements in the Meal (I can’t remember what they are called right now – side plates?!!)
All in all, the meal was:
- Roast Chicken
- Roast Potato, Sweet Potato and Pumpkin
- Broccoli, Cauliflower and Carrot with Cheesy Béchamel Sauce
- Corn on the Cob
- Bread Rolls
- Onion Jam Gravy
Mmmmm……my favourite!!! As you can see, it’s not the same as a bought roast chook. Everything about it tastes different and it’s much better!
Oh and my last secret –
Change it up!!!
Try a new stuffing or spice rub every couple of times! New veggies…new gravy…
Experiment!
Go wild!
And enjoy xox