Provencale Garlic Chicken

There is really nothing like a roast chicken for a Sunday lunch or dinner. It's simple, flavourful and everyone can enjoy it at the same time. Maybe that's why it's often called "a Sunday roast". Once marinated, the whole chicken gets popped into the oven. You get to do your own thing around the house or even run some errands. Once the roast is done, just carve it up and serve out for a great meal. I love recipes such as this ... so simple! And heh it's minimal cleaning up as well.

This particular roast is the ultimate garlic dish, based on the classic chicken with 40 cloves of garlic. If you are not a fan of garlic, I would surely advise you to stay far, far away. This roast is great as a meal on it's own, serve it up with a side of green salad and any left overs can be used as a sandwich filing.



Provencale Garlic Chicken
Recipe Adapted from "Good Baking - The New Basics" by Jill Dupleix
Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 medium sized chicken
Sea salt and black pepper
2 dried bay leaves
5 - 6 springs of thyme
1/4 cup olive oil
40 plump whole garlic cloves unpeeled
10 small potatoes or 5 large ones, cut in half, unpeeled
1/4 cup dry white wine

Method:

1) Preheat oven to 350F.

2) Rub chicken with a little salt, pop the bay leaves and 2 thyme sprigs inside, and truss with string.

3) Place in a lightly oiled, large, lidded casserole and add the garlic cloves, potatoes, and white wine. Drizzle the olive oil over the chicken scatter a few thyme sprigs on the top. Season well with sea salt and pepper.

4) Lay a sheet of foil across the casserole, clamp the lid on tightly and pot roast for 1 1/4 hours. Remove the lid and increase the heat to 425F. Roast until the skin is golden and the chicken is cooked through, about 10 to 15 minutes longer. (I did not have a casserole pot so I used a normal roasting pan and used 3 layers of foil to cover the chicken. Make sure that the foil is tightly wrapped around the sides of the roasting pan)

5) Gently transfer the chicken to a serving platter, remove the string and carve. Pile the garlic cloves on top of the chicken and serve with the potatoes and cooking juices. Squish the garlic and eat the sweet, nutty puree with the chicken.