Green Tabasco Roast Chicken

Anytime I think about roast chicken, this is what comes to mind each time — a juicy, crispy-skinned bird. And in case you’re thinking “roast chicken is roast chicken,” as I once did, I’m here to tell you that this is not just any roast chicken recipe.

“Lek jou lippe” or “Lip smacking good”

Afrikaans 🇿🇦 or English

Green Tabasco Roast Chicken

Few dishes are as beloved as a golden roast chicken which stems form its power to comfort. We’re taking the classic roast checking and amping up the volume.(Pump up the volume, suddenly playing in my head, Thanks Marrs) GREEN TABASCO CHICKEN takes an honest, fuss-free approach to roast chicken. A dish you’ll turn to when you need an impressive crowd-pleaser or decadent yet easy family dinner.

• 1 whole roasting chicken (3 lbs/1½ kg), rinsed & pat dry⠀
• Sea salt or kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper ⠀
• 1 lemon cut ½ crosswise ⠀
• 1 jalapeño cut ½ lengthwise ⠀
• 2-3 garlic cloves, peeled ⠀
• 1 x 5oz bottle Tabasco Green Pepper Sauce or other green hot pepper sauce ⠀
• 6-8 tablespoons bacon fat or ghee aka clarified butter ⠀
• 1 cup dry white wine ⠀
• 1 cup chicken bone broth or chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch (5ml)

1. Preheat oven to 500℃ (260℃). Snip off the wingtip (last joint on chicken wing) and the pope’s nose. Salt and pepper the cavity and stuff it with the lemon, jalapeño & garlic. Truss the legs with kitchen twine and place on a bed of baby potatoes or root vegetables of your choice in a cast iron skillet or baking sheet so the chicken doesn’t touch the bottom of the pan. Baste the chicken with ½ a bottle of Tabasco. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper on the wet Tabasco sauce. Roast until you hear the chicken sizzling, about 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350℉ (180℃) and baste with bacon fat or ghee. Repeat every 20 minutes. Cook until internal temp. reaches 165℉ (74℃) when checked where the thigh meets the breast with a probe thermometer. Or check that the juices run clear at this spot. About 1 hour -1½ hours. ⠀
2. In the meantime place cut trimmings, chicken giblets, (minus the liver) and chicken broth in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer while the chicken roasts. Allow to reduce by half. ⠀
3. Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes on the counter before placing on a cutting board. Using kitchen shears, remove string and cut out the back bone. Try not to lay the chicken on the breast side if you want to maintain the crispy skin. Carve the chicken and place on a serving platter. Save all the chicken juices that will be in the cavity along with the back bone, jalapeño (see note) and garlic and discard the lemon because it’ll make the sauce bitter.
4. Place the skillet on the stove top over high heat and deglaze the pan with the white wine. Use a spatula to scrape up all the brown bits and the drippings. Add the chicken juices, the backbone, jalapeño, garlic and reduce chicken broth to the skillet and bring to a boil. Mix the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water and slowly add to the sauce stirring constantly. The sauce should be slightly thicker and silky. Strain through a sieve, add 1 -3 tablespoons of Tabasco sauce to taste (optional) and serve a the bottom of the carved chicken or in a sauceboat.

Serve with the roasted potatoes and roasted vegetables or mashed potato

Notes:  Thoroughly dry the chicken before cooking:  For crispier skin and a better roast chicken, take the time to thoroughly dry the chicken, inside and out, before it goes in the oven. Excess moisture can lead to steaming, and will leave you with less-crisp skin. If you do not want you sauce to be to spicy only place ½ the jalapeño in the saucepan when making the sauce.

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