Coconut Roast Chicken with Asian Pasta Salad

Roast chicken is an absolute favourite, and this version has a good kick of Asian flavours, and cooks in next to no time. Marinate overnight if you can - a Ziplock bag is perfect. Butterflying the chicken will cut down the cooking time. If you don’t fancy butterflying it yourself, ask your butcher, otherwise, use chicken chops. Always buy the best quality chicken you can afford, free-range or organic will definitely produce the best flavour.

Team the Coconut Roast Chicken with an Asian pasta salad.

Ingredients

• 1.5kg Chicken, butterflied, or chicken pieces, skin on (preferably thigh meat, bone in)
• Coriander leaves

Marinade

• 250ml coconut cream
• 2 tbs yellow curry paste
• 2 tbs fish sauce
• 2 tbs palm sugar, grated
• 2 tbs sweet chilli sauce
• 1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1/2 bunch coriander root and stems, finely chopped

Asian Pasta Salad

• Dried pasta (such as vermicelli or angel hair)
• 1/3 cup plum sauce
• 2 tbs water
• 2 tbs soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp sesame oil
• pinch dried chilli flakes or to taste
• 1/2 large bunch shallots
• 1 red capscium, thinly sliced
• 1 cup carrots, cut into matchsticks

Method

Butterfly the Chicken

1. Wash the chicken and pat dry with paper towel. Cut through the skin on both sides of the backbone with a knife. Then using kitchen scissors, cut along both sides of the backbone and through the ribs and remove.
2. Turn the chicken over and place, skin side up, on a clean, flat surface.
3. Flatten the bird by pressing down on the wing and leg joints using the heels of your hands. Use your body weight to apply as much pressure as possible.
4. Cut off the wing tips.
5. Carefully push fingers between the breast skin and flesh to separate. Then put the coriander leaves under the skin

For the Marinade

1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and pour over the chicken. Refrigerate in a zip lock bag for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight.

Cook the chicken

1. Preheat oven to 190C.
2. Remove the chicken from the marinade, place on a rack in a baking tray.
3. Roast for approx. 50 minutes, basting with some of the remaining marinade after 25 minutes. To test whether the chicken is cooked, insert a skewer into the thigh, and the juices should run clear. If not, return to the oven for another 10 - 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, and rest covered with foil, for 15 minutes before serving.
4. This dish can be cooked completely on the BBQ, but I find the skin tends to blacken before the chicken is cooked.
5. To avoid this, start the chicken in the oven for 25 minutes, then transfer to the BBQ for about 20 minutes to finish off.

To serve

1. Carve into serving pieces, pile onto a platter, drizzle with baking juices, top with some extra coriander leaves and serve with lemon or lime wedges.

Asian Pasta Salad

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, adding carrots the last 5 minutes of cooking. Rinse well under cold running water; drain thoroughly.
2. Cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.

The dressing

1. In a small mixing bowl stir together plum sauce, water, soy, sesame oil and dried chilli flakes.
2. In a large bowl combine pasta mixture, capscium, snowpeas, half the shallots and carrots. I find it easier to use my hands to do this. Add the dressing and toss to coat.

To serve

1. Pile the pasta onto a serving platter, and top with the remaining shallots.