Festive Christmas Recipe from Ginger Goa

For a festive Christmas centrepiece, Sous Chef Rajneesh Kr Piyush of Ginger Goa (Panjim) shares his recipe for Roasted Poulet, a whole corn-fed chicken roasted with rosemary, thyme, garlic and lemon. Baby potatoes, celery, onions and carrots cook alongside it, and the chef’s tips on homemade stock and seasoning help keep the chicken moist. It takes about an hour and 15 minutes in total.

Ingredients for Roasted Poulet

• One full corn fed chicken, that’s around 1.5 kg.
• Olive oil- 2 to 3 TBSP
• Fresh rosemary
• Fresh thyme
• Pinch of a mix of dried herbs
• Whole garlic pods – 6 to 7
• One lemon thinly sliced
• Freshly made chicken stock
• 8 to 10 baby potatoes (small ones)
• 2 stalks of celery
• 2 onions
• 1 carrots
• A brush of butter on top (optional)
• Sea salt
• Fresh black pepper
• Tips
• Stock your fridge with homemade chicken stock.
• Chicken stock can be made from chicken wings, carrot, onion, bay leaf, peppercorns and salt.
• Grind your fresh herbs to release their flavor.
• Don’t salt your chicken way in advance, it will rob all the moisture away from it.

How to Make Roasted Poulet

• Take the chicken with skin on, and remove the unmentionables.
• Take the garlic pods with the skin on, and smash them with a knife. Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the lemon and the garlic.
• You can truss the chicken; many prefer to sew the chicken up.
• Pour the olive oil in it, and add the rosemary and thyme leaves.
• Crush them into the oil.
• Lightly massage the chicken with the flavored olive oil.
• Sprinkle a bit of the mixed dried herbs too. And some minced garlic.
• Then add sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Now pour some chicken stock into the roasting pan (Get recipe: Fresh Chicken Stock)
• Add roughly chopped celery, carrots and mini potatoes.
• Then put the chicken in, it should fit snugly in the pan.
• Turn the chicken over once or twice in the middle.
• Let the chicken rest for ten minutes before you carve it.

Chef Profile

Rajneesh Kr Piyush

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The Daily Brunch editorial team, led by co-founder Anju Anna Alex, has written about luxury hotels, restaurants, chefs and travel across India and beyond since 2016, with stories told through the people behind them.