Garlic Chicken Recipe

This title is a bit of an understatement, perhaps it should read ‘garlic with chicken’. This is one of those recipes that you might think contains a typographical error, but no, this recipe does require a large quantity of garlic. Traditionally it should use even more, but it has been scaled down a little as
garlic is not particularly cheap in this country. Whole cloves are roasted alongside the chicken and when cooked, the cloves can be eaten whole. As they’ve been cooked for so long they lose their strong aroma, however, they take on a unique flavor that is delicious.

Serves: 4
Make: 30 min

Ingredients:

4 whole garlic bulbs
3 lb (1.5 kg) chicken
2 oz (50 g) butter
Juice of one lemon
Salt to taste
Pepper

Directions:

1. Peel half of the garlic cloves and keep the rest in their skins. Season the chicken inside and out with salt and pepper, then pour the lemon juice over the chicken, again inside and out. 

2. Stuff the peeled garlic inside with half of the butter. Smear the remaining butter over the chicken and place with the breast-side down on a baking tray.
3. Cook in a pre-heated oven on Gas Mark 4 (350 °F, 180 °C) for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and place the unpeeled garlic cloves around the edge of the chicken and return to the oven. 

4. After another hour, turn the chicken onto its back and cook for a further 30 minutes. When the chicken is cooked remove from the baking tray with the garlic. 

5. Serve the chicken with the juices
from the pan. The whole garlic cloves can be eaten using your fingers, or spread onto toast.