Preserved lemons really brighten up savoury dishes be they meat, fish or vegetable and with only a small amount required. I made mine last winter and the sharpness present for the first few months has turned to a muted and deep flavour.
A butterflied chicken though a bit more work means that the meat remains juicy and tender and all the skin has the exposure to crisp. I made a chickpea and pomegranate salad to go alongside it (previous post) but instead of using the saffron I replaced it with a heaped teaspoon of turmeric.
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 whole chicken butterflied
Rind of 2 preserved lemons (discard pulp) and rinse to get rid of the salt
1 fresh lemon
3 onions
2 tsp of toasted cumin seeds
A handful of coriander leaves and stems roughly chopped
2 crushed garlic cloves
3 tbsp olive oil
Sea salt
1 red chilli deseeded and chopped
Preheat your oven to 220
Slice the onions and chop the fresh lemon into rough squares. Place in a tray big enough for the chicken as well and drizzle with some olive oil and a pinch of salt.
Butterfly the chicken. Take a knife (a paring knife is the best but a sharp knife works fine) and a pair of kitchen scissors. Place the chicken on a cutting board breast side down and working from the cavity to the neck, cut down each side of the back bone with a pair of kitchen shears. Discard the backbone. Put the chicken skin side up and gently push it flat and reposition any skin that has moved. It should look a bit like its disco dancing at this point.
Now make the marinade. Add a tsp of salt and the cumin seeds to a pestle and mortar and crush, followed by the chilli, garlic, preserved lemons, coriander and then the olive oil. Keep gently working the mixture and combining (less of a crush now and more of a gentle pressure using the sides of the mortar.
Once it is ready rub the marinade all over the chicken. Place the chicken over the onions and lemons and then in the oven. Roast on 220 for 20 minutes. After that turn it down to 170 and continue to roast for 1-2 hours depending on the size of your chicken. Check it after an hour by pushing a skewer in to the chicken and when the juice runs clear it is ready. If the skin looks like it is getting dark too quickly, cover with tin foil. Make sure it is uncovered for at least the last 20 minutes so that the skin crisps up. Rest the chicken for 20 minutes and then quarter it.
Serve with the onions and lemon and the chickpea salad; its sweetness is a lovely contrast to the sour tang of the lemony chicken.
Labels: chickpeas, preserved lemon, roast chicken
