Zuni Roast Chicken with Bread Salad

My Simple Zuni Roast Chicken and Bread Salad

This recipe has become a favorite of mine, a real comfort food. It sounds complicated, but I’ve learned that the most important part is just taking the time and paying attention to the details. The beautiful thing about this dish is that it’s perfect for a cozy night in or a more elegant dinner party – it’s adaptable to whatever the occasion calls for. The juicy roast chicken, with its crispy skin, is simply incredible. But it’s the bread salad that truly elevates this dish from good to phenomenal. The warm, slightly crunchy, and flavorful bread salad is the ideal complement to the tender chicken, the flavors intertwining perfectly. I love the mix of textures and tastes – it’s a symphony on the plate.

Honestly, the first time I made this, I was a little intimidated by the seemingly complex steps. The lengthy salting process felt daunting, but trust me – it's crucial! It makes the chicken incredibly juicy and flavourful. This isn't just a recipe; it's a method, a process that builds flavour and texture with each careful step. It’s become a ritual for me, a moment of mindfulness in a busy week where I can focus on creating something beautiful and delicious.

The bread salad is equally important. I initially used a sourdough bread but then switched to the suggested peasant-style bread and the difference was incredible. The bread's texture and ability to soak up those delicious chicken drippings are key factors here. Experimenting with different types of bread is part of the fun, but I've found that the rustic bread creates the best outcome. Each step, each detail, from broiling the bread to making sure the chicken gets that beautiful crisp skin, really does contribute to the final product. It’s a labour of love, but oh, so worth it!

I've adapted the recipe to my own kitchen and style over the years, making it my own special dish. I love sharing it with my friends and family, and the compliments I receive make all the effort worthwhile. There's something truly satisfying about cooking something so flavorful and beautiful – it’s a celebration of simple ingredients, combined with meticulous technique, and that’s what makes the experience so rewarding.

This isn't just a meal; it's an experience. It's a story told through the careful preparation of the ingredients, the aromas that fill your kitchen as the chicken roasts, and the final presentation of this magnificent dish. It's a culinary journey, a testament to the power of taking your time and making something truly special.

So, gather your ingredients, put on some relaxing music, and enjoy the process. The results will be well worth the effort. It's a recipe to savor, a dish to remember, and a culinary adventure you'll want to repeat again and again.

Step-by-step

• Seasoning the chicken (1 to 3 days before serving; for 3-1/4- to 3-1/2-pound chickens, at least 2 days): Remove and discard the lump of fat inside the chicken. Rinse the chicken and pat very dry inside and out. Be thorough—a wet chicken will spend too much time steaming before it begins to turn golden brown. Approaching from the edge of the cavity, slide a finger under the skin of each of the breasts, making 2 little pockets. Now use the tip of your finger to gently loosen a pocket of skin on the outside of the thickest section of each thigh. Using your finger, shove an herb sprig into each of the 4 pockets. Season the chicken liberally all over with salt and pepper (we use 3/4 teaspoon sea salt per pound of chicken). Season the thick sections a little more heavily than the skinny ankles and wings. Sprinkle a little of the salt just inside the cavity, on the backbone, but don't otherwise worry about seasoning the inside. Twist and tuck the wing tips behind the shoulders. Cover loosely and refrigerate.
• Starting the bread salad (up to several hours in advance): Preheat the broiler. Cut the bread into a couple of large chunks. Carve off all of the bottom crust and most of the top and side crust (reserve the top and side crusts to use as croutons in salads or soups). Brush the bread all over with olive oil. Broil very briefly, to crisp and lightly color the surface. Turn the bread chunks over and crisp the other side. Trim off any badly charred tips, then tear the chunks into a combination of irregular 2- to 3-inch wads, bite-sized bits, and fat crumbs. You should get about 4 cups. Combine about 1/4 cup of the olive oil with the Champagne or white wine vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Toss about 1/4 cup of this tart vinaigrette with the torn bread in a wide salad bowl; the bread will be unevenly dressed. Taste one of the more saturated pieces. If it is bland, add a little salt and pepper and toss again. Place the currants in a small bowl and moisten with the red wine vinegar and warm water. Set aside.
• Roasting the chicken and assembling the salad: Preheat the oven to 475°F. (Depending on the size, efficiency, and accuracy of your oven, and the size of your bird, you may need to adjust the heat to as high as 500°F or as low as 450°F during the course of roasting the chicken to get it to brown properly. If that proves to be the case, begin at that temperature the next time you roast a chicken. If you have a convection function on your oven, use it for the first 30 minutes; it will enhance browning, and may reduce overall cooking time by 5 to 10 minutes.) Choose a shallow flameproof roasting pan or dish barely larger than the chicken, or use a 10-inch skillet with an all-metal handle. Preheat the pan over medium heat. Wipe the chicken dry and set it breast side up in the pan. It should sizzle. Place in the center of the oven and listen and watch for it to start sizzling and browning within 20 minutes. If it doesn't, raise the temperature progressively until it does. The skin should blister, but if the chicken begins to char, or the fat is smoking, reduce the temperature by 25 degrees. After about 30 minutes, turn the bird over (drying the bird and preheating the pan should keep the skin from sticking). Roast for another 10 to 20 minutes, depending on size, then flip back over to recrisp the breast skin, another 5 to 10 minutes. Total oven time will be 45 minutes to an hour. While the chicken is roasting, place the pine nuts in a small baking dish and set in the hot oven for a minute or two, just to warm through. Add them to the bowl of bread. Place a spoonful of the olive oil in a small skillet, add the garlic and scallions, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until softened. Don't let them color. Scrape into the bread and fold to combine. Drain the plumped currants and fold in. Dribble the chicken stock or lightly salted water over the salad and fold again. Taste a few pieces of bread—a fairly saturated one and a dryish one. If it is bland, add salt, pepper, and/or a few drops of vinegar, then toss well. Since the basic character of bread salad depends on the bread you use, these adjustments can be essential. Pile the bread salad in a 1-quart baking dish and tent with foil; set the salad bowl aside. Place the salad in the oven after you flip the chicken the final time.
• Finishing and serving the chicken and bread salad: Remove the chicken from the oven and turn off the heat. Leave the bread salad to continue warming for another 5 minutes or so. Lift the chicken from the roasting pan and set on a plate. Carefully pour the clear fat from the roasting pan, leaving the lean drippings behind. Add about a tablespoon of water to the hot pan and swirl it. Slash the stretched skin between the thighs and breasts of the chicken, then tilt the bird and plate over the roasting pan to drain the juice into the drippings. Set the chicken in a warm spot (which may be your stovetop), and leave to rest while you finish the bread salad. The meat will become more tender and uniformly succulent as it cools. Set a platter in the oven to warm for a minute or two. Tilt the roasting pan and skim the last of the fat. Place over medium-low heat, add any juice that has collected under the chicken, and bring to a simmer. Stir and scrape to soften any hard golden drippings. Taste—the juices will be extremely flavorful. Tip the bread salad into the salad bowl. (It will be steamy-hot, a mixture of soft, moist wads, crispy-on-the-outside-but-moist-in-the-middle wads, and a few downright crispy ones.) Drizzle and toss with a spoonful of the pan juices. Add the greens, a drizzle of vinaigrette, and fold well. Taste again. Cut the chicken into pieces, spread the bread salad on the warm platter, and nestle the chicken in the salad.