Citrusy Soy Chicken with Braised Vegetables & Polenta
Ingredients:
For the chicken marinade:
1 whole jointed chicken, or 1 spatchcocked chicken
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp orange juice
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp soy sauce
3 cloves garlic
2 sprigs fresh thyme (leaves finely chopped) + a few sprigs for the roasting pan
1 sprig fresh rosemary (leaves finely chopped) + a few sprigs for the roasting pan
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tbsp salt
A few cracks of black pepper
For the roasting pan:
About 8 carrots, quartered
1 bulb of fennel, sliced into 1/2 cm rounds
1 large shallot, sliced
Juice of 4 oranges
Salt and Pepper to taste
Olive Oil for drizzling
For the polenta:
1/2 cup polenta
1 cup water
1.5 cups milk
2 tbsp butter
grated parmesan to taste
Salt and pepper
Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 425 F/220 C.
Juice the oranges.
Chop your fennel, carrots, shallot, rosemary, and thyme.
Place the fennel, carrots, shallot, and whole rosemary and thyme sprigs into the roasting pan.
Drizzle the vegetables with olive oil, salt and pepper.
Combine the marinade ingredients: olive oil, orange juice, brown sugar, soy sauce, three cloves garlic, chopped thyme, chopped rosemary, paprika, rosemary, salt and pepper. Taste the marinade for seasoning and adjust if needed.
Place the chicken into the roasting pan and rub the marinade all over.
Pour the orange juice into the roasting pan.
Place the chicken in the preheated oven and roast for around 25 minutes, basting every 10 minutes. The time will differ based on your oven, the size of the chicken, and whether it’s spatchcocked or not. Check the chicken after 20 minutes to see if it’s cooked and assess from there how much longer it should cook.
While the chicken is cooking, you can make the polenta. Place the polenta into a blender or food processor and let it blend to create a finer grain. Bring the milk and water to a simmer. Slowly whisk in the polenta over a low heat. Let the polenta cook over low heat for about 15-20 minutes until thickened and soft. Add in the butter, grated parm, and salt and pepper. I find polenta needs quite a lot of salt and pepper to bring out the flavor, so make sure you taste it before serving.
Signs that the chicken is cooked are that it’s golden brown, and if you place a sharp knife into the chicken and hold it for about 10 seconds, then touch it to your wrist, it should be very hot and you should have a visceral reaction. If that happens, you will know it’s ready.
Serve the chicken and vegetables over the polenta and baste the chicken with the cooking liquids. Enjoy!
