Nothing tastes better than food prepared on an open fire. I use this basic recipe to make roast garlic chicken indoors, so I thought, why not try it outside on an open fire the way the pioneers did it? It took a fair amount of time to cook but it was worth the effort.

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Name: Roast Garlic Chicken al Fresco
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 5 garlic cloves; 4 whole sprigs rosemary; 3 tablespoons fresh thyme; 3-4 whole garlic heads; 1 lb. baby new potatoes scrubbed; 1-2 tablespoon peanut oil; 1 whole lemon slices; water; 1/2 cup table salt; 30-40 charcoal briquettes

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INGREDIENTS

1 large roasting chicken ; soaked overnight in brine
5 garlic cloves
4 whole sprigs rosemary
3 tablespoons fresh thyme
3-4 whole garlic heads
1 lb. baby new potatoes ; scrubbed
1-2 tablespoon peanut oil
1 whole orange ; sliced
1 whole lemon ; slices
water
1/2 cup table salt
30-40 charcoal briquettes

INSTRUCTIONS

Brine:

Place the chicken in a large bowl with an adequate lid. Add enough water to cover the chicken. Place orange and lemon slices into the water along with the 1/2 cup of table salt. Refrigerate overnight.

Recipe:

About 4 hours before you are going to eat, start about 30 (or more) pieces of charcoal in a fire pit. I use a charcoal chimney for this purpose. While waiting for the charcoals to become hot, remove the chicken from the brine and rinse well. Pat dry with paper towels. Place the cleaned garlic cloves, sprigs of rosemary and the fresh time into the cavity of the chicken. Using kitchen string, tie the legs and wings closely to the chicken. This will allow the chicken to cook evenly. Pour the peanut oil into a #16 cast iron dutch oven with a lipped lid. Add the baby new potatoes, rolling them around a bit to distribute some of the oil onto them. Push the potatoes off to the sides of the pan and add the prepared chicken. Cut the growing ends off the whole garlic cloves and arrange them around the chicken, bottoms-down, with the potatoes. Do not remove the skins from the whole cloves. Drizzle a little more peanut oil on the garlic heads. I cover the entire chicken with more sprigs of rosemary and thyme, but this is not necessary.

Place the lid on the pan. After the coals are ready, prepare a bed of 15-20 coals in a single layer on the ground, making sure they are in the basic shape and size of the cast iron pan. Place the pan on the coals. Insert a digital or oven-safe thermometer into the thickest point on the chicken. Place the lid on the pan an cover with the remaining hot coals. When the temperature of the chicken reaches 180 degrees F, carefully remove the pan from the charcoal, sweeping the spent charcoal from the lid, as well. If you do this carefully, the ashes will not fall into the pan with the chicken.

Place the cooked chicken on a platter and allow to rest for about 20 minutes before carving.

NOTES

The actual cook time of this recipe varies so a digital thermometer is handy to keep track of the internal temperature of the meat. It allows you to leave the lid in place, thereby decreasing the cooking time because the chicken is kept at a constant temperature. Having some "back-up" charcoal ready to add is also a plus.

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Roast Garlic Chicken al Fresco

1 large roasting chicken soaked overnight in brine
5 garlic cloves
4 whole sprigs rosemary
3 tablespoons fresh thyme
3-4 whole garlic heads
1 lb. baby new potatoes scrubbed
1-2 tablespoon peanut oil
1 whole orange sliced
1 whole lemon slices
 water
1/2 cup table salt
30-40 charcoal briquettes

Brine:

Recipe:

About 4 hours before you are going to eat, start about 30 (or more) pieces of charcoal in a fire pit. I use a charcoal chimney for this purpose.  While waiting for the charcoals to become hot, remove the chicken from the brine and rinse well. Pat dry with paper towels. Place the cleaned garlic cloves, sprigs of rosemary and the fresh time into the cavity of the chicken. Using kitchen string, tie the legs and wings closely to the chicken.  This will allow the chicken to cook evenly. Pour the peanut oil into a #16 cast iron dutch oven with a lipped lid.  Add the baby new potatoes, rolling them around a bit to distribute some of the oil onto them. Push the potatoes off to the sides of the pan and add the prepared chicken. Cut the growing ends off the whole garlic cloves and arrange them around the chicken, bottoms-down, with the potatoes.  Do not remove the skins from the whole cloves. Drizzle a little more peanut oil on the garlic heads. I cover the entire chicken with more sprigs of rosemary and thyme, but this is not necessary.

Place the lid on the pan. After the coals are ready, prepare a bed of 15-20 coals in a single layer on the ground, making sure they are in the basic shape and size of the cast iron pan. Place the pan on the coals. Insert a digital or oven-safe thermometer into the thickest point on the chicken. Place the lid on the pan an cover with the remaining hot coals.  When the temperature of the chicken reaches 180 degrees F, carefully remove the pan from the charcoal, sweeping the spent charcoal from the lid, as well. If you do this carefully, the ashes will not fall into the pan with the chicken.

Place the cooked chicken on a platter and allow to rest for about 20 minutes before carving.

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Roast Garlic Chicken ala Fresco
tamitrone

Roast Garlic Chicken ala Fresco
tamitrone

Nutrition

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Serving Size: 1 Serving (144g)
Recipe Makes: 8 Servings

Calories: 51
Calories from Fat: 1 (2%)

Amt Per Serving		% DV

	Total Fat 0.1g	0 %
	Saturated Fat 0g	0 %
	Monounsaturated Fat 0g
	Polyunsanturated Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0mg		0 %
Sodium 6980.7mg		241 %
Potassium 275.5mg		7 %
Total Carbohydrate 12.3g		4 %
	Dietary Fiber 2.1g	8 %
	Sugars, other 10.2g
Protein 1.5g		2 %
Powered by: USDA Nutrition Database Disclaimer: Nutrition facts are derived from linked ingredients (shown at left in colored bullets) and may or may not be complete. Always consult a licensed nutritionist or doctor if you have a nutrition-related medical condition.

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Calories per serving: 51

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