Buli G’s roast chicken

HERE is a foretaste of what will be in the Aurora Special Care Centre cookery book, a recipe for roast chicken from Buli G Ngomane, former radio presenter in the Eastern Cape and Gauteng whose music career saw her travel the world with various vocal groups.

Buli is now the group public affairs and communications manager at Coca-Cola Sabco (Africa and Asia) and presents

The Power Within, a weekend women’s empowerment programme on SABC3.

“I’ve always been more of an ‘entertainer’ than a domestic goddess so I lean towards simple tasty recipes when I have dinner guests,” says Buli.

“This is one of my favourites. I serve it with sweet potato mash and a selection of green veggies in winter. In summer it goes well with green salad and garlic bread.”

Her herb and citrus oven roasted chicken serves six.

INGREDIENTS:

¼ cup olive oil 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped 2 tablespoons sugar 2 whole lemons, one juiced and one sliced 2 whole oranges, one juiced and one sliced 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning ½ teaspoon paprika 1 teaspoon onion powder ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste 10-12 pieces boned chicken parts (thighs and legs are best), pat dry 1 medium onion (any kind), thinly sliced 1 teaspoon dried thyme, or fresh chopped 1 tablespoon dried rosemary, or fresh chopped Chopped fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme, parsley), for garnish, optional

METHOD:

Preheat oven to 200°C. In a small bowl whisk together olive oil, garlic, sugar, lemon juice, orange juice, Italian seasoning, paprika, onion powder, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper.

Place chicken in a rimmed baking dish. Place parts skin-side-up and spread them out evenly in the pan. Pour olive oil mixture all over the chicken, turning pieces to coat all sides. (If you marinated the chicken in this mixture, still add it all in). Arrange slices of lemon, orange and onion around and under the chicken. Sprinkle all over generously with thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper.

Bake uncovered for about one hour, or until chicken is cooked and juices run clear. Remove parts to a serving-platter and garnish with additional chopped fresh herbs, if desired.

For best results, chicken can be marinated in a plastic container or bag for several hours or overnight in the olive oil mixture.