Roast Chicken Stuffed with Parsley, Hazelnuts & Butter

Ingredients

Courtesy of "Feasting" by Karen Martini

2 red onions, thickly sliced
1 tbsp sea salt, or to taste
4 cloves garlic, sliced
½ tsp black peppercorns
1 tbsp olive oil
½ bunch flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and chopped
50g hazelnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
100g butter, softened
1.6kg free-range chicken
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon, sliced

Method

Placing herbs and nuts under the chicken’s skin gives
this dish its wonderful flavour and crispy texture.

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (fan-forced). Line a baking
dish or cast-iron dish with onion slices (the dish
should be just large enough to hold the chicken).

2. Gently pound the salt, garlic, peppercorns and olive
oil in a mortar and pestle. Gradually add the parsley
and hazelnuts and pound to a rough paste. Spoon the
mixture into a bowl and stir in the butter.

3. Dry the chicken inside and out with paper towel and
season well. Make small pockets under the breast and
leg skin using your fingers, then gently spread the
stuffing over the breast and legs between the skin and
meat (take care not to tear the skin). Stuff lemon slices
into the cavity and place the chicken on the onions in
the baking dish.

4. Roast for about 1¼ hours, basting with the pan juices
halfway through the cooking time. The chicken should
be golden and cooked through. Check by inserting a
skewer in the thickest part of the thigh – if the juices
are still a bit pink, roast for another 10 minutes or so.

5. Rest for 10 minutes before serving.


Karen Martini's "Feasting" was released in 2012 by Penguin Aus.