A shout out to roast chicken 🐔
Recipe: Gochujang Slow-Roasted Chicken
Hiya and welcome to Forks & Chopstix, my new little (food) baby that not only serves as a way for me to endlessly talk about my undying love of food, but is also my attempt at keeping in touch with people I love and care for (spoiler alert: I mean YOU.)
As a card-carrying member of the Introvert Club, I am quite adept at keeping myself to myself, and given that my day job largely revolves around speaking to people throughout most of the day, sometimes reclusion isn't a choice but more of a means of self-preservation. But these are COVID times, and I've had 6 months of seclusion as a result of lockdown, so Forks & Chopstix is my first foray back into the world, and my attempt to peek out from my shell to say "Sup?"
Forks & Chopstix is my way of reaching out to food-lovers who may be looking for someone who is as obsessed about food as they are, or to reach food-eaters who might just be looking for inspiration on what to cook for dinner. If you're someone who (god forbid) eats out of necessity and not for enjoyment, Forks & Chopstix will also occasionally talk about booze, bars, theatre and what's happening around London to tickle your pickle.
I'll be popping this into your Inbox fortnightly on a Wednesday so you've got something to get you through the month - I hope you enjoy reading this as much I enjoy writing them, and if you have any feedback or questions, feel free to leave a comment below! 😊
SO, this week I wanted to talk about a roast chicken. I love cooking it, I love eating it, and I wished more people roasted whole birds more often. Honestly, I don't think there are many foods which are as versatile as a roast chicken - on one hand simple yet satisfying, and on the other, potentially complex, nuanced and elegant.
You can spatch-cock it and roast it flat. You can keep it whole and roast it on medium-high. Or you can scatter some gorgeous baby potatoes and some root veggies around it and slow-roast them over low heat.
You can do a simple salt and pepper rub before whacking it in the oven or you can dry-brine it overnight. You can season it with turmeric, cumin and ground coriander seeds for a slightly middle-easterny vibe. You can cast smoked paprika, a touch of cayenne and a squeeze of lime for a slightly more Latin touch. Keep it French with some thyme, rosemary and lots of butter. Or marinade overnight in dark soy, sesame oil, a touch of honey and a pinch of five spice for a chinesey spin - shall I go on?
Thinking back on what I've cooked throughout lockdown, there is one thing that I've cooked more than any other, and that is a Gochujang Slow-Roasted Chicken which I based on a Bon Appetit recipe I came across in March.
DAFUQ IS GOCHUJANG? Gochujang is a sweet-ish Korean chilli paste that is slightly fermented to give a very nice and subtle funk. You mix up the Gochujang in a bowl with some honey, salt, pepper, and olive oil and basically give the chicken a thorough Korean massage. Then in an oven-safe pot, place the chicken in the middle and scatter some baby potatoes, onions and garlic around the chicken and place it in an oven to roast at 140 - 150 degrees Celsius for two and a half to three hours - that's right, I said THREE HOURS. It sounds like ages (and it is, especially when it's 10pm on a weekday and you're waiting the last few minutes for dinner to be ready) but the slow-roast at the low temperature means you have a super soft, super succulent, incredibly tender Korean bird to put into your mouth (cheeky). 100% worth it!
To finish off and make sure you've got a full meal, take out the bird to rest once it's done, place the pot on the hob (with the potatoes, onions and garlic still in it, and add a bag of kale to the pot and stir-fry in the pan juices for about 5 - 8 minutes to soften the kale, seasoning with a touch more salt, pep and some more honey if you fancy. Squeeze a bit of lime juice over and there you go - a meal which your taste buds and colon would be grateful for!
Get the full recipe here and try it out for yourself, and let me know if you enjoyed it or not! I'd say this is more of a weekend recipe, but hey, no reason you can't do this on a weekday if you pre-marinade the chicken the night before and chuck it into the oven at 4pm (since most of us are WFH-ing these days) in time for dinner at 7pm. 🍗
See you for another Forks & Chopstix in two weeks!