Spice and Herb Roast Chicken

There is fairly a deep love of the unusual, certainly when it comes to food - a love that has certainly enhanced my love and appreciation for many a unique food destination or item. But, then again lately a lot of the differences seem so strange - possibly after 10 years of marriage we are at the point where the quirks are not so cute..

Ok! Ok! we passed that during the 5 year mark, but Anshul still patienly does loads of dishes when I do my stress cooking, and well I put up with his episodes of not shaving for 2-3 days at a stretch. One of the joys of modern living is that most days we tend to be way too busy to realize...

Anyhow, all of this is about the fact that my husband does not really like roast chicken, not really his cup of tea. Anyhow, this particular variation works for most people that I know.

Desi Roast Chicken - Spice and Herb Roasted Chicken

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 2.5 hours (almost all inactive)

Ingredients

3/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 cup chopped parsely
2-3 green chillies
1 large piece of peeled ginger
2-3 pods garlic
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons of salt
Juice of 2 fresh limes (save the squeezed fruit)
1 tablespoon grated jaggery
3-4 pound chicken
2-3 tablespoons of ghee

Method of preapartion

1. Place the cilantro, parseley, chillies, ginger, garlic, ground cumin, salt and lime juice in a blender and grind to a paste.
2. Stir in the jaggery.
3. Rub this mixture all over the chicken, taking care to enter all the cracks and crevices and well under the skin. Stiff the leftover limes into the stomach cavity.
4. Lightly spread the ghee.
5. Heat the oven to 350 degees.
6. Place the chicken in a deep baking dish and bake for about 2.5-3 hours, until the chicken is well browned, and very soft.
7. Turn off the heat and let the chicken sit for 20 minutes.
8. Slice into pieces and serve.

Note: Please save the carcass for flavorful broth.