Molasses Five Spice Roast Chicken Recipes

MOLASSES FIVE SPICE ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• Remove gilbets and neck from chicken.
• Rinse chicken with cold water and drain well; pat dry with paper towels.
• Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of five-spice powder inside cavity.
• With chicken breast side up, tuck wing tips under back of chicken.
• With string, tie legs together.
• Line medium roasting pan with foil.
• Place chicken, breast side up, on a small rack in center of foil lined pan.
• Wash and dry potatoes and pierce with fork, cut into quarters small enough to cook not so small they turn to mush.
• Place potatoes around chicken in pan.
• You can also peel potatoes and cut them up instead of leaving them whole to bake if you prefer.
• In cup combine molasses, ketchup, honey, soy sauce, salt and remaining five spice powder.
• Brush half of molasses glaze all over chicken.
• Cover pan with loose tent of foil.
• Roast chicken for 30 minutes.
• Remove foil and brush remaining glaze over chicken.
• Roast another 30 minutes longer or until temperature on meat themometer reaches 175 to 180 and juices run clear when thickest part of thigh is pierced with knife Transfer potatoes to cutting board; keep warm.
• With tongs, tilt chicken to allow juices from cavity to run into roasting pan.
• Place chicken on platter; let chicken stand 10 minutes before carving.
• Slice potatoes into 3/4 slices (if you left them whole to bake); arrange on platter with chicken.
• Garnish with chives.
• Skim and discard fat from drippings in pan.
• Serve pan drippings with chicken and potatoes.

FIVE-SPICE ROAST CHICKEN (TOM DOUGLAS)

Steps:

• Make the paste: add the star anise, chile, cinnamon, fennel, cloves, and cardamom in a small pan over medium heat; toast for a few minutes until aromatic, shaking the pan.
• Let cool, then grind toasted spices in a spice mill or clean coffee grinder.
• Transfer ground spices to a small bowl.
• Add in the ginger, garlic, brown sugar, salt, and pepper.
• Gradually add the oil, stirring with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to make a smooth paste.
• Trim the excess fat from the chicken and clean out the cavity.
• Rinse under cold water and pat dry.
• Use you hands to rub the spice paste all over the skin of the chicken; set the chicken on a rack over a baking pan and place it, uncovered, in the refrigerator overnight.
• The next day, preheat the oven to 425°; put the ¼ orange and star anise in the cavity of the chicken, season the bird with kosher salt, and place it on a rack in a roasting pan.
• *For easier cleanup, line the roasting pan with foil because the spice paste that drips off may burn.
• Using a bulb baster instead of a brush, so you don't disturb the spice crust, baste the chicken with the melted butter or bacon fat and put the bird in the oven to roast.
• Baste the chicken with the fat collecting in the bottom of the pan every 20 minutes.
• The chicken is done when an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thigh reads 175° and the juices run clear, about 1 ¼ hours.
• Remove the chicken from the oven and let rest 5-10 minutes before carving.
• To carve the chicken, cut off the legs and separate into leg and thigh.
• Using a knife or poultry shears, cut out the backbone, then separate the breasts by cutting through the breastbone.
• Cut off the wings, then cut each breast into 2 pieces.
• You should have 10 pieces-2 legs, 2 thighs, 4 pieces of breast, and 2 wings; pile the chicken pieces on a large platter and garnish with orange wedges.