Slow Roasted Asian Chicken

Roast Chicken - a meal I do not cook a lot as for me it's always the same.  The menu will always read "Roast Chicken with Sage and Onion Stuffing, Vegetables and Gravy".  Enjoyable on an occasional time frame for me.

Until I came accross this recipe for a Slow Roasted Asian Chicken which I knew was going to appear on the menu sooner rather than later.  And to be honest I am so glad we tried it.

The chicken was juicy and tender, laced delicately with the asian spices.  There was no gravy as such but a wonderful fragrant yet pungent jus as a result of the slow cooker.  Served with steamed rice and steamed vegetables it was a dish thoroughly enjoyed by everyone.

Slow Roasted Asian Chicken

(recipe sourced from Weight Watchers Magazine June 2013)

Serves: 6

ProPoints per serve: 7

1 whole chicken, fat trimmed

salt

freshly ground black pepper

6 cm piece fresh ginger, thickly sliced

4 whole star anise

3 green shallots, cut into 3cm lengths

6 garlic cloves, whole, bruised

1 chicken stock cube

1 cup water

1 teaspoon sesame oil

Preheat the oven to 160 Degrees Celsius.

Place the chicken in a roasting tray.  Season the chicken, inside and out, with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Place a third of the ginger, star anise, shallot and garlic under the chicken, a third in the cavity and scatter the remaining third around the chicken.  Disolve the stock cube in water and pour around chicken.

Cover with foil and roast for 1 1/2 hours or until the juices runc lear when the thickest part of the chicken is peirced with a skewer.

Preheat the grill, remove the foil from the chicken.  Place the chicken on a wire rack.  Strain the roasting juices into a jug.

Place the rack and the chicken back into the roasting tray and brush the chicken with the sesame oil.  Place the chicken under the grill 20cm away from the heat source, and grill for 5 - 10 minutes or until the skin is crisp and golden.

Meanwhile use a spoon to skim the fat from the roasting juices.

Serve the chicken with steamed vegetables and roasting juices.

Add 1/2 cup steamed rice to this dish for an additional 4 ProPoints per serve.

(Click here for a printable version of this recipe)