Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic 四十瓣蒜烤鸡

While I transited at CDG airport Paris when returned from US trip. I spotted a French cookbook in English, so happy and quickly bought this cookbook. The first recipe immediately I try out is this Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic, perfect to cook in a lazy Sunday dinner.

 

I use French oven to cook this, you can also use any casserole dish.

 

 

spread the flesh from the toasted garlic on bread, yum!

Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic 四十瓣蒜烤鸡 

1 whole chicken ~1.2kg (I use kampong chicken )

2 celery stalks, including leaves

2 sprigs rosemary

4 sprigs of thyme (I replaced with dry thyme)

4 sprigs Italian parsley

40 garlic cloves, unpeeled

2tbsp olive oil

1 carrot, roughly chopped

1 small onion, cut into wedges

1/2cup white wine

1 and 1/2tsp sea salt or to taste 

Method

1. Preheated the oven to 200C. Put a chopped celery stalk and 2 sprigs each of the rosemary, thyme and parsley into the chicken cavity. Add 6 cloves of garlic.
2. Brush the chicken liberally with some of the oil and season with oil. Scatter about 10 more garlic cloves over the base of a large casserole dish. Put the remaining sprigs of herbs, chopped celery, carrot and onion in the casserole.
3. Put the chicken in the dish (breast side up). Scatter the remaining garlic cloves around the chicken and add the remaining oil and the wine. Cover and bake for 1hour, or until chicken is tender the juices run clear when the thigh is pierced with a skewer.
4. To serve, carefully lift the chicken out of the casserole dish. Strain off the juices into a small saucepan. Pick out the garlic cloves from the strained mixture. Spoon off the fat from the juices and boil for 2-3mins to reduce and thicken a little
5. Cut the chicken into serving portions, pour over a little of the juices and scatter with garlic. Toast the baguette slices, spread soft flesh squeezed from the garlic on the bread, serve with chicken.

Recipe adapted from cookbook “a little taste of France with minor changes, by Sonia aka Nasi Lemak Lover