Zuni Roast Chicken with Bread Salad

Again, I'm behind with my post...  As much as I love cooking and taking the photos, it just seems that the posting part gets away from me...  I spend all day on a computer at work, and by the time I get home, staring at a computer screen is the last thing I want to do...  So today...I decided to do my blog at work!  :-)  Just kidding...or am I...????

My recipe this week came from the book Ten: All the Foods We Love and Ten Perfect Recipes for Each by Sheila Lukins.  I really love the concept behind this book, but must admit I was a bit scared when I pulled it off the shelf, because there is a crown roast on the front cover, and from what I hear, those aren't cheap!

Regardless...the recipe I did this week was Zuni Roast Chicken.  According to the book, this recipe came from a restaurant, and is the juiciest chicken ever; I promise--it didn't disappoint.  I started by preparing the whole chicken by patting it dry, sticking some sage and thyme under the skin near the breasts and thigh (and I added some dill and basil that a coworker gave me from her herb garden; so fresh!!!), and then generously coating the outside with coarse salt and black pepper.

The poor chicken looks so helpless!!!  But delicious...none the less.  Now comes the hard part: stick it in the fridge and let it sit for 2-3 days.  I know...I know...you want chicken NOW...and you would think salting the chicken would pull all of the moisture out (at least I did) but that is definitely not the case.  This process results in the must succulent chicken I have ever had...at home OR out and about.

--THREE AGONIZING DAYS LATER--

Okay...the chicken looks...dry...  Ew.  Oh well...I followed the directions, so I'm hoping for the best!  Now before we get the chicken in the oven, we need to start our bread salad.  I'm sure you're wondering what the heck bread salad is...  Well...it's salad, with bread.  But the bread is deliciously scrumptious!

First lets start by soaking a handful of currants in some warm water and red wine vinegar.  Oh, you don't have currants either?  That's okay...I used raisins...they came all the way from California just to be a part of my dish.  Wasn't that sweet?  And did I mention--preheat your oven to 475.  That's hot!

Now get a loaf of day-old bread (I found a loaf of day old ciabatta bread on the Wal-Mart discount shelf...I love that day-old bread shelf...) and cut it into cubes.  The recipe says to cut off the crusts, and to be a little more rustic with your shaping of the bread...but I was being lazy and went with cubes.  Toast them up under your broiler just long enough to get some color, and add them to a bowl.  Like my bowl?  It's a Wal-Mart find, too!

I proceeded to drizzle my bread with a vinaigrette I whipped up with olive oil and white wine vinegar.  Now...let's start some real cooking.  Get your chicken out of the fridge, and pat it dry.  If you have a roasting pan that's stove-top safe, preheat it there.  If not, stick it in the over to preheat for a good 10-15 minutes.  You want the pan hot enough so when the chicken touches it the skin sears and forms a nice crust.  I don't think mine worked like that...but I tried!  Stick the bird in the oven.

While Foghorn roasts, get a pan started over medium heat, and toss in some pine nuts.

WATCH THEM CAREFULLY--or you (just like every Food Network chef...and myself) will burn your first batch.  Move the pan constantly, and when they finally begin to turn golden brown...pour them over the bread!  Burnt pine nuts and no bueno.  I don't have picture of my cooking the pine nuts because I was scared I'd burn my second batch...  Now chop up some green onions (whites and greens) and saute them in olive oil with some garlic...because everyone love garlic!  Once those have slightly wilted, add them to the bread mixture.  If there's any left over oil in the pan, toss it in as well.

Now drain the currents and add them to the bread mixtures and toss it all with about half a cup of chicken stock, salt and pepper, and give one of the cubes a taste.  Yum--it's like sitting at an Italian restaurant and dipping good bread in the olive oil on the table.  If it's not...fiddle with the spices until it's perfect.  Oh...and somewhere around this time, I turned my chicken over so the other side could crisp up.  Pour the bread mixture into a baking dish and put on the top shelf of your over while the chicken continues cooking (30 minutes or so).  Cover with foil if you're afraid the bread will get too dark.

Once the juices on the chicken run clear, it's safe to come out of the oven.  Go ahead and turn the heat off too, but leave the bread in there...you want it to be all warm and crispy when you eat the salad.  I know it's temping to dive right into the chicken, but let it rest.  You don't want to cut into it right now or the juices will escape.

Ok--5 minutes have passed--take the bread out and layer it with some nice field greens.  Aren't we fancy tonight!  But seriously...you don't want iceberg lettuce for this salad.  Any sort of mixed green will work nicely, and adds a peppery flavor to this combination.

That's basically the whole recipe.  I think I may have missed a few minor details, but I'm tired of writing, and thinking...so here's the finished product:

This chicken was so juicy and delicious.  The only down side was that so much chicken was wasted (I hate picking little bites of meat off of little bones).  So next time, I'll probably try this technique on chicken breasts instead of the whole bird.  I can only imagine the joy a boneless chicken breast with this flavor will bring me...  You should definitely try it!

~Shorty~