Friday Food Lust - Sticky Lime Roast Chicken

Photo courtesy of BBC Good Food 

Since I bumped this off in favour of Cadbury's Philadelphia muffins last week (you can tell I have a sweet tooth!), I thought I'd share this brilliant savoury recipe for Sticky Lime Roast Chicken with you today.

I first found this in a Sunday newspaper but, being the bumbling idiot that I am, I've since lost the article. Anyway, hooray for the brilliant BBC Good Food, who luckily have the recipe to hand!

For anyone who is a serial Sunday roast devotee (I'm thinking most of the UK population), this is a fantastic, lighter alternative for the spring and summer. The lime juice alongside the cucumber and coriander make it deliciously refreshing and zingy.

Not only that, but it is also easy peasy to make - oh, and it's perfect for al fresco meals when that five minute slot of sunshine finally does come...

Sam x

Ingredients:
Four limes, halved
One chicken (approx 2kg in weight)
8 garlic cloves (Four whole, four chopped)
1 chilli, deseeded and chopped
Large piece of ginger
Small bunch of coriander stalks
2 tbsp soft brown sugar
1 tbsp fish sauce
Slice cucumber, shredded onions and coriander sprigs to serve.


Method:
1. Heat the oven to 190C, or 170C with a fan oven. Squeeze the juice out of the limes and into a small bowl. Next (and this is the yucky part which I always get squeamish over!), pop the lime halves into the chicken's cavity along with the whole garlic, half the chilli, half the ginger and the coriander  stalks.

2. Pop the chicken into a roasting tin and whack it in the oven for one hour.

3. Meanwhile, you can get started on making the sticky glaze. To do this, add the remaining garlic, chilli, ginger, brown sugar and fish sauce to the lime juice and use a blender to blitz until smooth. Add the juice mix to a small pan and heat until it reduces and is thick enough to coat the chicken.

4. Once the chicken has roasted for an hour, tip some water into the bottom of the tin. Pour half the glaze over the chicken and continue to roast for a further 45 minutes. If the chicken starts to brown too quickly, simply cover it with foil. Leave the cooked chicken to the side to rest.

5. Once you've discarded the fat, pour the juices from the roasting tray into the rest of the glaze and tip into a small pan. Simmer over a low heat and dip a teaspoon in to taste - add more sugar or fish sauce if it needs it.

6. Serve the chicken with the cucumber, spring onions, coriander and finished gravy. Enjoy!