Roasted Chicken with Clementines

Recipe by The View From the Great Island

Roasted Chicken with Clementines is a masterful Yotam Ottolenghi recipe from his seminal cookbook, Jerusalem. This easy chicken dinner has layer upon layer of flavor punctuated by those gorgeous charred clementines!

Ingredients

• ½ cup of arak ( (substitute Pernod or ouzo, I used Pernod))
• ½ cup olive oil ((divided))
• ¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 4 tbsp grainy mustard
• 4 tbsp light brown sugar
• 2 medium fennel bulbs ( trimmed, halved lengthwise, and then cut each half into 4 wedges)
• 1 large chicken ( cut into eight pieces)
• 4 clementines ( cut horizontally into 1/4, leave the peel on)
• several fresh sprigs of thyme, leaves removed
• 2½ tsp fennel seeds ( lightly crushed, I use a rolling pin)
• salt & freshly ground pepper
• flat leaf parsley to garnish

Method

1. Set oven to 475F
2. Mix the first 6 ingredients together in a bowl to make the sauce, and set aside.
3. In a very large baking dish or baking sheet arrange the chicken, skin side up, fennel and clementines. Everything should be more or less in one layer so the chicken will brown nicely.
4. Sprinkle everything with salt and fresh cracked pepper. Add the fennel seeds and the thyme. Pour half of the sauce over all.
5. Put the pan into the hot oven. The high temperature is important, make sure you are at 475F. Let the chicken roast for about 35-45 minutes until everything is browned. Rotate the pan halfway through if your oven heats unevenly.
6. Meanwhile take the other half of the sauce and put it in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and reduce it a bit. Pour this over the chicken about 10 minutes before it is finished cooking.
7. Serve the chicken garnished with some fresh parsley, or more fresh thyme.

View the recipe instructions at The View From the Great Island