Sensational Spanish Sherry Roasted Chicken with Hazelnut Picada
Anyone who knows me will tell you how much I love Spanish food and because of this I often like to put a Spanish twist on many of my dishes. This take on a Sunday Roast is fragrant, flavourful and fantastic - olé!
The main flavour running throughout this meal is Amontillado sherry: a dark and thick yet dry sherry that perfumes the chicken from the inside out and adds a profound richness to the gravy. The picada is a Spanish mixture of tasty things that is used to lighten the whole dish adding texture, freshness and acidity to counteract the earthy flavours of the chicken, gravy and vegetables. Enjoy this dish with a glass of full-bodied Rioja or a small tipple of the sherry used in the dish.
Sensational Spanish Sherry Roasted Chicken with Hazelnut Picada
Serves 4-6
1.8kg (4lb) whole chicken
salt and pepper
olive oil
8 tbsp Amontillado sherry
1 red onion, peeled and chopped into wedges
2 celery stick, chopped into batons
5 garlic cloves, bashed and peeled
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp dried oregano
For the gravy:
2 tbsp Amontillado sherry
1 tbsp corn flour
500ml chicken stock
For the picada:
100ml olive oil
30g chewy peasant-style bread, sliced 1cm thick
40g hazelnuts
zest from ½ orange
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 tbsp sherry or red wine vinegar
1 tbsp Amontillado sherry
To serve:
mashed potatoes
roasted squash or pumpkin
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4. Put the onion, celery and garlic in the base of a roasting tray and then place the chicken on top. Drizzle generously with olive oil and then pour half of the sherry over the top and the rest in the cavity. Season liberally with salt and pepper and sprinkle over the paprika and dried oregano, then roast in the oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes, basting every now and then.
Once the chicken is cooked through transfer it to a plate and place it in a warm place (I put mine in a very low oven) to rest for 15 minutes while you make the gravy and picada. For the gravy, return the roasting tray to the hob over a medium-high heat and use a potato masher to mash the cooked onion, celery and garlic to extract their flavours. Pour over the sherry and turn the heat up to high, letting it bubble away for a few minutes while you stir up all the good stuff from the bottom of the tray. Sprinkle over the corn flour and pour in the stock, stir and let it thicken for 5 minutes, then strain and keep warm.
For the picada, toast the hazelnuts in a small dry frying pan over a medium heat, until they give off a nutty smell. Transfer into a food processor along with the garlic clove. Place the frying pan over a medium-low heat and pour in the olive oil. Add the bread in a single layer and fry on both sides until it is a pale caramel colour. Drain on some kitchen paper and then add to the processor. Blitz until a coarse crumb then stir in the orange zest, vinegar and sherry.
To serve, carve the chicken and divide between plates, spoon on the mash and roasted pumpkin then pour over the gravy and scatter over the picada.
The main flavour running throughout this meal is Amontillado sherry: a dark and thick yet dry sherry that perfumes the chicken from the inside out and adds a profound richness to the gravy. The picada is a Spanish mixture of tasty things that is used to lighten the whole dish adding texture, freshness and acidity to counteract the earthy flavours of the chicken, gravy and vegetables. Enjoy this dish with a glass of full-bodied Rioja or a small tipple of the sherry used in the dish.
Sensational Spanish Sherry Roasted Chicken with Hazelnut Picada
Serves 4-6
1.8kg (4lb) whole chicken
salt and pepperolive oil
8 tbsp Amontillado sherry
1 red onion, peeled and chopped into wedges
2 celery stick, chopped into batons
5 garlic cloves, bashed and peeled
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp dried oregano
For the gravy:
2 tbsp Amontillado sherry
1 tbsp corn flour
500ml chicken stock
For the picada:
100ml olive oil
30g chewy peasant-style bread, sliced 1cm thick
40g hazelnuts
zest from ½ orange
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 tbsp sherry or red wine vinegar
1 tbsp Amontillado sherry
To serve:
mashed potatoes
roasted squash or pumpkin
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4. Put the onion, celery and garlic in the base of a roasting tray and then place the chicken on top. Drizzle generously with olive oil and then pour half of the sherry over the top and the rest in the cavity. Season liberally with salt and pepper and sprinkle over the paprika and dried oregano, then roast in the oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes, basting every now and then.
Once the chicken is cooked through transfer it to a plate and place it in a warm place (I put mine in a very low oven) to rest for 15 minutes while you make the gravy and picada. For the gravy, return the roasting tray to the hob over a medium-high heat and use a potato masher to mash the cooked onion, celery and garlic to extract their flavours. Pour over the sherry and turn the heat up to high, letting it bubble away for a few minutes while you stir up all the good stuff from the bottom of the tray. Sprinkle over the corn flour and pour in the stock, stir and let it thicken for 5 minutes, then strain and keep warm.
For the picada, toast the hazelnuts in a small dry frying pan over a medium heat, until they give off a nutty smell. Transfer into a food processor along with the garlic clove. Place the frying pan over a medium-low heat and pour in the olive oil. Add the bread in a single layer and fry on both sides until it is a pale caramel colour. Drain on some kitchen paper and then add to the processor. Blitz until a coarse crumb then stir in the orange zest, vinegar and sherry.
To serve, carve the chicken and divide between plates, spoon on the mash and roasted pumpkin then pour over the gravy and scatter over the picada.
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