SESAME SOY ROAST CHICKEN

the only roast chicken recipe that matters + a trip to Ripon

There are many ways to roast a chicken, there have been scores of books dedicated to the topic, miles of internet discourse and I have personally spent hours in the kitchen over the years salting, brining, basting and spatchcocking in the pursuit of the perfect roast chook. I’m a firm believer that like most things, there is no ‘one size fits all’, and the perfect roast chicken for me won’t necessarily be the perfect roast chicken for you. But hear me when I say, this chicken feels like the crowning jewel in a long line of attempts to perfect the roasting of a bird, it has been tested multiple times on different crowds of people, and it has only ever been showered in praise. I’ve said it before, and I will say it again, I eat meat very rarely, and when I do, I like to get the very best quality, from a trusted butcher. To that end, this chicken cost just shy of £25, which in this economy, is not nothing, but boy did it deliver on the price. This sweet chicken fed 6 people for two meals and the carcass made close to 4L of the most delicious chicken stock, which is now waiting in my freezer to become the base of yet more meals. My point is this, I would rather eat a very good quality chicken once a month than battery farmed, non organic, lesser quality meat every other day.

Now, I am aware that a soy roast chicken with rice is nothing new, I haven’t reinvented the wheel here, but here’s how the recipe came to be. Back in late September, I was invited to try the menu at a new opening in east London, The Marque Moon, which is a great spot if you’re looking for exciting food, good music and vibes on a Friday night. When I went they had a half soy braised chicken on the menu and it haunted my dreams for days following the meal. I had obviously tried versions of soy chicken before but this was something else, it had a depth of flavour I hadn’t encountered before, the meat fell off the bone, perfectly cooked, juicy, tender and delicious.

the soy braised chicken in question

Shortly after that meal I was visiting my parents in North Yorkshire with my friend Stacey and housemates Wojciech & Pier. The trip was ostensibly in honour of the annual Masham Sheep Fair - a real calendar highlight for me. But I also felt an obligation to show off this specific part of the Yorkshire to my friends, who had never visited. While we were there, I took them to all the highlights the small market town of Ripon, they tried the legendary Appleton’s pork pies & breakfast rolls, we took them to our favourite fish and chip spot (served with pots of tea as is the custom in Yorkshire), we had pints at the local pub, followed by a viewing of the nightly medieval tradition, the Ripon Hornblower, dating back to the year 886 (!) - if you know you know.

We had offered to cook for my family one night and between Stacey, Pier, Wojciech and I, we came up with the idea of this roast chicken. We were slightly limited with ingredients available to us, clearing M&S out of it’s entire stock of spring onions and struggling to get our hands on any decent chilli crisp oil, but we made it work. Stacey marinated the chicken for a few hours, time was not on our side, and while it was delicious, overnight is certainly better. Pier made his famous ginger scallion sauce, something that is so simple and easy to whip up but made all the difference to the meal. Wojciech sous cheffed for everyone and delivered his legendary KP skills. I took care of the rice, veg and toppings. What came together was far greater than the sum of its parts. Making it all together made a few hours work turn into half an hour of prep, followed by a relaxed drink while stacey periodically basted the chicken every 20 minutes or so in the background. It was the kind of meal I live for: easeful, deeply satisfying, enjoyable cooking, shared with family and great friends, even my little niece Agnes polished off her plate.

Once back in London, I tested the recipe a few more times, my housemates very valiantly offering to taste test the various results, and the recipe below is what I believe to be the ultimate version. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did and if you make this recipe, please please please use the carcass for stock - you won’t regret it. If you don’t have time on the day you roast the chicken, whack the bones in the freezer and save for a slow sunday when you can have a pot simmering away slowly in the background. You can then use that stock to make my chicken noodle soup, which is always a good idea, whether you have a cold or not.

Sending love, Rosie x

SESAME SOY ROAST CHICKEN

This recipe calls for an overnight marinade, and while that is the optimal length of time, you could do it in less, try and give it as long as you can, even if that’s just 1 hour before it goes in the oven, it will make a difference. The multigrain rice has been a game changer for me and is now the only way I want to cook rice, it’s texture is far more interesting, with a nuttier flavour and an extra kick of protein. If you have left over ginger scallion sauce, save it for drizzling on noodles, eggs, fried rice - just about anything really !

For the marinade:

3 tbsp light soy sauce

2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

2 tbsp sesame oil

2 tbsp dark brown sugar

1 tsp five spice

4 x star anise whole

1 x bunch of spring onion, minced

1 x thumb sized piece of ginger, minced

For the chicken:

2.5 kg chicken

2 tbsp sesame seeds

100g butter, cubed

For the ginger & scallion sauce:

2 x bunches of scallions, finely minced

1 x large piece of ginger, finely minced

1 tsp ground white pepper

a pinch of salt

100 ml vegetable oil

For the multigrain rice:

400g white jasmine rice

200g quinoa

100g toasted sesame seeds

1. Prepare the marinade by whisking together all the ingredients in a bowl. Find a container or freezer bag that fits the chicken, add both the chicken and the marinade, then seal it tightly, massage the marinade into the chicken and then refrigerate over night.

2. The following day, preheat the oven to 220c.

3. Place the chicken in a deep roasting tray, pour all the marinade over the chicken and sprinkle with the sesame seeds, pressing the butter into the chicken breast, behind the legs and wings.

4. Roast the chicken for 70-80mins in the centre of the oven, basting every 20 minutes, until the juices run clear from the leg.

5. While the chicken is cooking, prepare the rice. Combine the rice with the quinoa, rinse until the water runs clear and then add the equal weight in water, cook until tender. I like to use a rice cooker, but you can cook it whichever way you feel most comfortable.

6. Prepare the sauce by combining all the ingredients except the vegetable oil into a heat proof bowl. Heat the vegetable oil until sizzling hot and then pour over the other ingredients, it will bubble up initially, allow this to simmer down and then stir to combine.

7. When the rice is done, fluff it up, tip it out onto a platter and scatter over the toasted sesame seeds.

8. Once the chicken is cooked, allow it to rest in a metal bowl for 15 minutes. Pour all the juices that gather in the bottom of the bowl into a saucepan, along with the juices from the roasting pan and simmer while the chicken rests, until it is reduced by one quarter.

9. Serve the chicken over the rice, drizzled with the scallion ginger sauce, some of the reduced chicken juices and alongside some steamed greens.

10. Once you have devoured the chicken, place the carcass in a large stock pot, cover with cold water, add some aromatics like a few onions, a bulb of garlic, a handful of peppercorns and a few bay leaves. Place it over a high heat, bring to the boil and then simmer for up to 2 hours. Strain and store the stock in containers, either in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for 2-3 months.