Several years ago, my sister was in San Francisco and decided to visit Zuni Café because she had heard so much about the roast chicken. She came away from the experience raving about it and insisting I go. I did not pay too much attention to it, after all, what could be so good about a roast chicken? You can buy them now at any grocery store and preparing them yourself is fairly effortless. Of course, I was quite wrong. I am a cookbook connoisseur and collector and happened to obtain the Zuni Café cookbook and discovered the reason why this recipe is so legendary. The late chef and creator, Judy Rodgers, insisted on small free-range birds (which tend to be juicier than large, lean roasters), a 24-hour salting period to allow the seasoning to penetrate deeply and a high roasting temperature for a supremely crispy skin. What really makes this recipe so incredible, however, is the accompanying bread salad, which is meant to be a bed on which to serve the roast chicken and sop up its delicious juices. I am an impatient person though and recipes that require 24-hour notice challenge me. So, instead, I simply break down the chicken into 8 parts and roast them on their own in a pan and serve them over the bread salad. The ensuing dinner is one of Luke’s favorites. It is important to use a baguette I learned, however, as sourdough bread, which I substituted did not get hard enough and was too moist for the pan juices. Live and learn! I hope you enjoy this wonderful Winter meal!
Ingredients
1 3 lb. chicken (I like Belle and Evans or Perdue)
4 tbsps. olive oil
1 tbsp. dried thyme
1 lemon zested and cut in half
6 cloves of garlic, left in skins and pressed with a knife briefly
2 tsps. sea salt
Fresh ground black pepper
½ French baguette, cut into pieces
2 tbsps. red wine vinegar
¼ cup water
Half bag of arugula
2 tbsps. pine nuts
2 tbsps. currants
1. Preheat the oven to 425 F. Arrange the cut-up chicken pieces on a roasting pan covered in foil and scatter the garlic cloves around them.
2. In a small bowl, combine the thyme, salt, a few grinds of fresh ground pepper, lemon zest, and 1 tbsp. of olive oil. Mix together and rub all over the chicken pieces.
3. Place the roasting pan in the oven and roast the chicken for 40 minutes. After this time has elapsed remove from the oven and arrange pieces of cut baguette and the zested lemon halves in between the chicken pieces. Drizzle with olive oil and continue roasting for another 10 minutes.
4. In a small bowl, combine red wine vinegar and ¼ cup water and set aside. Place the arugula in a large wide serving bowl or platter. Top it with the pine nuts and currants and toss together.
5. Remove the chicken from the oven and add the vinegar mixture. Stir on the bottom and pluck out the baguette croutons and add them to the serving platter with the arugula. Top with the chicken.
6. Take the garlic cloves in the pan and squeeze them out of their skins and then squeeze the roasted lemon halves to release the juices. Stir up everything on the bottom of the pan and then pour the sauce over the chicken and arugula mixture.
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