Chicken and the Fireplace Stove
Every time I pass by a fast food restaurant selling chicken flavored with a number of herbs, I think of a friend of mine who invited me to his cabin where he cooks using a fireplace stove. He had prepared a meal for the evening, whose main course was chicken with garlic and herbs, and it was so good, I knew I would later try it out for myself. He didn’t want to reveal the recipe at first, and apparently it depends on a fireplace stove with a standard spit, but I’m sure I can find one!
My friend insisted that the fire had to be hot and, he said, “mature,” and I laughed a bit about that, but when he stopped talking, I decided to let him just go ahead and tell me about the recipe without interruption. Again, he said, I needed a mature and hot fire and a standard spit. Then a medium sized chicken, say, three or four pounds, and about 12 sprigs of fresh herbs (he used thyme and lemon thyme, but said rosemary would work, too). Three garlic cloves, but you need to sliver them. Ground pepper. Kosher salt, although if you’re trying to cut down on salt, this ingredient is optional; it’s used mostly for marinating. Then you have to get white butchers twine. I’ve never tied up any food I’ve cooked, so that one might be an effort!
If you decide to go ahead and salt-marinate the chicken, you should rinse the fowl thoroughly, with cold water. Drain it, pat it dry. Then you sprinkle salt onto it, wrap up the chicken and refrigerate it overnight or for as long as seven days!
If you decided to skip the salt-marinate, then we really start here: Use the butcher’s twine, and tie the chicken up. I must have frowned, because he frowned, as if I weren’t taking him seriously. I said, “Okay, I’ll tie the chicken up. Go ahead, please!” Rinse the herbs, then dry the herbs. Spread them out over the bird, make sure they’re even, and then tuck them under the string. Repeat this process with the garlic (once you’ve slivered it, of course). Then, you just let the chicken sit. One hour or so, until it comes up to room temperature. During this time, you’re supposed to build a fire, then let it “mature” for at least a half hour, and apparently, this just means, don’t build a fire and stick a bird on it. Let the fire become the fire it’s going to truly be, I guess! That made sense to me.
Finally, put the bird on its spit, put it on the stove, roast for about an hour and a half to two hours (depending on heat and chicken size). Twenty minutes later, you’re carving!
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