Stuffed Chicken Roast

I have always wanted to make this dish, but was a little anxious thinking that I would fail miserably. Finally  I mustered up my courage and looked thru some recipes on the internet for ideas and then cooked up this recipe. It turned out very good.

Ingredients

1 Full chicken without the giblets i.e. without the innards

For the Marinade

1 small onion

Almonds - a handful

Garlic - 2 cloves

Ginger - a small piece

Green chilli (hot pepper) - 1 medium size 

Salt to taste

Yogurt - 1 small cup

One bunch of Corriander leaves (Cilantro)

For the stuffing

Potatoes - 2 small potatoes

1 small onion

1 small tomato

Mixed vegetables - 1 cup of frozen vegetables or you can use any vegetables you like

Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

Salt to taste

Black pepper powder to taste

Caraway seeds or Mint - 1 or 2 tsps

Parsley - a small bunch of fresh parsley leaves 

Preparation

Preparing the marinade and marinating the chicken

Put the almonds in a small bowl of hot water to help peel off the skin. Next grind all the ingredients for the marinade mentioned above and transfer to a bowl. Wash the chicken well under running water and pat dry. Next transfer the chicken to the marinade bowl and cover it with the marinade, ensuring that the marinade is applied to the inner cavity of the chicken too. Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap and refrigerate it for about 12 to 24 hours.

Preparing the stuffing

Cut the potatoes and onion into small pieces and saute it in a pan. Add garlic, tomatoes, salt and turmeric to it and saute it. Add the mixed vegetables and cook the mix until all the vegetables are cooked. Add caraway seeds or mint and the parsley leaves to add flavor and aroma.

Stuffing the chicken and roasting it 

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Stuff the empty cavity of the chicken with the stuffing prepared above. Apply any remaining marinade on top of the chicken. Transfer the chicken to a roasting dish and put it in the oven. Adjust the temperature to somewhere between 325 to 350F and keep monitoring the chicken. Cooking the chicken over a lower temperature for a longer time ensures the chicken cooks evenly and also keeps it juicy. After an hour and half or when you feel the chicken has cooked well, you can raise the temperature to 425F to brown the skin.

Remove the chicken and cover with an aluminum foil and leave it aside for about 15 minutes. Covering it helps the cooking process to continue and also help redistribute the juices. The chicken is done and ready to be savored! Enjoy!