Piri Piri Roast Chicken

Here’s another recipe from Gail Simmons’ cookbook Bringing It Home. I have cooked quite a few of the dishes listed in it, but this is the second one I am posting on my website for you guys! It’s super delicious, and it’s perfect for a Sunday dinner! It’s a little bit more labor intensive than the recipe I usually post, but it’s so worth it. It’s different and tasty, you will impress everyone at the dinner table!

What you’ll need:

1 (4 -5 pound) chicken
2 dried Ancho Chiles, stemmed, seeded, torn to pieces
3 lemons
5 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 cup coarsely chopped peeled fresh ginger
1 medium Serrano chili, seeded and coarsely chopped
1 medium shallot, coarsely chopped
2 tbsp paprika
1 tsp ground coriander
2 tbsp coarsely chopped cilantro leaves and tender stems, plus more for serving
salt
4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 1/2 pounds small to medium potatoes (1 to 2 inches in diameter)
ground black pepper

Rinse the chicken and pat dry. Lay the chicken breast side down. Using kitchen shears, cut along each side of the back bone and remove it. Turn the chicken around and gently press on the breast bone to crack it, and flatten the chicken. This is a technique called spatchcock.

Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil, ad the ancho chilies, and remove them from the heat. Let stand for for 20 minutes.

Grate the lemon zest from one lemon. Squeeze enough juice from the same lemon plus one of the remaining lemons to yield 1/4 cup. Cut the remaining lemons into slices, remove the seeds and set aside.

In a blender or food processor, combine the ancho chilies and 2 tbsp of their soaking liquid, the lemon zest and juice, garlic, ginger, Serrano chili, shallop, paprika, coriander, 1 tbsp of the cilantro, and 3/4 tsp salt. While the machine is running, add 2 tbsp of oil to form a thin paste.

Gently push 3 tbsp of the paste under the skin of the chicken, then rub your hands over the skin over the outside of the chicken to evenly distribute the paste underneath.

Put the chicken in a 1-gallon resealable plastic bag. Pour the remaining paste over the chicken. Pressing out the air, seal the bag. Rub the outside of the bag to work the marinade into all the nooks and crannies of the chicken, then place the bag in a bowl and let the chicken marinate at room temperature for one hour, turning the bag a couple of times.

Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Put a 9 x 13 inch roasting pan in the oven for 10 minutes to preheat it. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, toss the potatoes with 1/2 tsp salt, a generous pinch of black pepper, and the remaining tbsp oil. Remove the chicken from the bag, reserving the paste. Spread about half the paste all over the chicken, then generously season the chicken with salt and pepper.

Remove the pan from the oven and immediately add the potatoes and their oil, scrapping all of the oil from the bowl into the pan. Arrange the chicken on top, breasts side down, then spread the chicken with the remaining paste. Carefully return the to the oven. Roast for 15 minutes. Turn the chicken breast-side up and bake for another 10 minutes. Liberally baste the chicken and the potatoes with pan juices. Tuck the reserved lemon slices between the potatoes, both under and around the bird. Continue roasting for 20 minutes.

Transfer the chicken to a cutting board, let rest for 10 minutes, the carve and serve with the potatoes, lemon slices, juicy pan drippings, and chopped cilantro.