Paprika, fresh mint, and lemon make the best rub for this roast chicken. It roasts slowly under the foil and turns out so juicy and flavorful. I throw baby carrots and cut potatoes in the bottom of the pan and it makes a full meal! For a spicier version of this recipe use 'hot' paprika. It seems like a lot of work to get all the spices together--but it's SO worth it. My husband asks for it once a week.
Ingredients
- ground cloves: 0.125 tsp
- ground black pepper: 0.25 tsp
- ⅜ teaspoon fennel seed, ground:
- sesame seeds, ground: 0.75 tsp
- ground coriander: 0.125 tsp
- ground cumin: 0.125 tsp
- ground allspice: 0.125 tsp
- ground nutmeg: 0.25 tsp
- ground ginger: 0.75 tsp
- ground cardamom: 0.125 tsp
- Hungarian paprika: 2 Tbsp
- lemon juice: 0.25 cup (fresh)
- salt: 1 Tbsp
- fresh mint: 3 Tbsp (chopped)
- ground black pepper: 1 tsp
- garlic, peeled and: 2 clove (crushed)
- olive oil: 3 Tbsp
- small red potatoes, quartered: 1 pound
- baby carrots: 2 cups
- lemons: 2 piece
- roasting chicken, rinsed and patted dry: 1 piece (4 pound)
Metric Conversion
Stages of cooking
-
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
-
For the spice mix: Mix together in a bowl the cloves, pepper, fennel, sesame seeds, coriander, cumin, allspice, nutmeg, ginger and cardamom. Set aside.
-
For the spice paste: Place the paprika, lemon juice, the spice mix (from Step 2), salt, chopped mint, black pepper and garlic cloves in a blender. Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and blend to until ingredients are mixed, about 6 or 8 pulses. Slowly add the additional olive oil if mixture seems too thick to spread. Blend just until mixture is a smooth paste.
-
Spread potatoes and carrots in a roasting pan. Rub about 1/4 of the spice paste inside the cavity of the chicken. Rub the remainder of the paste on the outside of the chicken including the underside. Place the chicken directly on the carrots and potatoes. Pierce the 2 lemons all over with a fork, and place them into the chicken cavity.
-
Tent the chicken with aluminum foil. Roast approximately 2 hours until the thickest part of the thigh reaches 180 degrees F (80 degrees C) and the juices run clear. Remove from the oven and let rest for about 10 minutes before serving.
