My Chinese Chicken Roast. Luscious and succulent. Patiently basted with a honey – soy marinade. Perfumed with ginger and 5-spice powder. Roasted to a gorgeous golden.
And this is the story of me and My Christmas.
Of celebration and revelry.
Of family and friends.
Of caring and sharing.
Of Nahoums cakes, Mangshor Jhol, Chinese Chicken Roast and Kolkata Chicken Biryani.
Of Bow Barracks and Park Street.
And this is the story of my Kolkata.
Where to celebrate a Christian festival, Hindu crowds patiently queue up outside a Jewish bakery to pick up their plum cakes baked to splendid perfection by Muslim bakers.
Just as their fathers did.
And before their fathers, their grandfathers did.
Words cannot describe this.
This is an experience.
A philosophy.
A way of life that far transcends religion.
And nothing can ever mutate these core fundamentals.
God bless and have a wonderful Christmas !!!
Chinese Chicken Roast
Ingredients
- 1 kg whole chicken
- 3/4 cup light soy sauce
- 3 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 10-12 fine slices of ginger
- 2 tsp chinese five spice powder
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp honey or maple syrup
- 2 tsp cooking oil
Instructions
- Wash the chicken and pat fry.
- Dust 1/2 tsp Chinese five-spice powder in the cavity of the bird, keep aside for 30 odd minutes.
- In a deep bowl, take the light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sugar, remaining Chinese five-spice powder and ginger slices. Mix well till the sugar dissolves.
- Place the chicken, cavity side down in the marinade, smear all over the bird. Cover the bowl, keep aside. After 3-4 hours, flip the chicken, now cavity side up, give it a good smear again with the marinade. Again cover the bowl, keep aside for 2-3 hours. The more the merrier.
- Take out the chicken from the marinade, stuff the ginger slices inside the cavity, tie the legs with a kitchen twine.
- Add 2 tsp honey to the remaining marinade, cook till sticky. Keep aside.
- Preheat the oven to 180C.
- Grease the baking tray with oil. Place the chicken on the tray, put inside the oven. Roast for 20minutes.
- Take the tray out, brush the chicken with the tray juices that have run out, return to the oven, continue to roast for 15 more minutes.
- Again the tray out, brush the chicken with the tray juices that have run out and the reserve marinade, return to the oven, continue to roast for 10 more minutes.
- Repeat once more.
- Take the chicken out of the oven, allow to rest for 15 minutes. My Chinese Chicken Roast is ready to carve.
God bless and have a wonderful Christmas !!!
Do you use chicken with skin?