A wedding + crisp-skinned chicken
/Hello my loves,
It’s short and savoury from me this week, as I have a full schedule today ahead of a Very Special Wedding that I’m delighted to be attending tomorrow. There’s a dress to pick up and nails to be done and hair to fluff and shoes to try on: it’s a packed dance card. But before I fly off to attend to my very lovely list, I wanted to leave you with a spot of deliciousness to see you through your weekend: my recipe for crisp-skinned chicken with olives and rosemary.
There’s no time like autumn for a chicken roast. As a whisper of chill creeps into the mornings, the oven starts to call, and I’m compelled to load my dinged, dented and much-loved roasting tray with warming roasty goodness. This crisp-skinned chicken is a slightly lighter take on the traditional roast, making it perfect for the beginning weeks of autumn, when the weather hasn’t quite reached its cool zenith.
This roast features a delicate white wine gravy whose faint tartness pairs beautifully with the succulence of the chicken. It also pays homage to salty little olives, which are ripening on trees everywhere at this time of year. In my view, there’s no better olive than a roasted one. A stint in the oven renders them into puckered hot-pops of salty delirium that send my eyes rolling to the back of my head every time. Use chicken thighs on the bone for this recipe if you can. If they’re not available, boneless thighs will work equally well.
Crisp-skinned chicken with olives and rosemary
Serves 4
Ingredients
4 large pasture-raised chicken thighs, skin on (about 1kg total weight)
30 olives, any variety
350ml white wine
Two 15cm sprigs of rosemary, leaves stripped
Olive oil for drizzling
Salt
You will also need
A roasting tray suitable for both the oven and the stove top
Heat your oven to 220C. Drizzle a little olive oil into your roasting tray, and place your chicken thighs on top (skin-side up). Drizzle a little more olive oil over each thigh, then sprinkle a generous pinch of salt onto the skin of each one. Give them a lovely rub, massaging the salt all over the skin - this is what will give you crispy, crunchy chicken skin of dreams. Place the chicken in the oven and cook for 10 minutes. While the chicken is cooking, remove the pits from your olives. Press each olive firmly with the flat side of your knife to loosen the pits, then remove them with your hands, or with further assistance from the knife. After the chicken has cooked for 10 minutes, add the olives and half the rosemary leaves to the roasting tray, nestling them around the chicken pieces and leaving the chicken skin unencumbered, so it can continue to crisp. Cook for another 20 mins, or until the olives are hot and slightly wrinkled, and the chicken skin is crispy and golden. Remove the tray from the oven, and take out the chicken thighs, setting them aside to rest. Place the tray on the stove top, on a medium-high heat. When the chicken juices are boiling, add the white wine and the other half of the rosemary leaves, stirring to dislodge and incorporate any browned chicken goodness from the bottom and sides of the pan into the gravy. Simmer rapidly until the wine is reduced by about half its original volume. Give it a taste - the alcohol should have cooked out leaving a light, tangy gravy in its place. If it’s still too boozy for your liking, you can cook it a little longer. Spoon the olives and gravy onto serving plates, and top with your crispy-skinned chicken.
Love, Rachel xxx
