Chili-lime chicken with roasted garlic

By carol gorman

Ingredients

• 3-lb (1.5-kg) whole chicken
• 2 limes
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) butter , at room temperature
• 1/2 tsp (2 mL) each salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 tsp (1 mL) hot chili flakes
• 2 whole garlic heads
• Olive oil

Details

Servings 4

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 375F (190C). To flatten chicken, place on cutting board, breast side down. Using kitchen shears or a sharp knife, starting at the neck, cut through bones on both sides of the backbone. Remove back and discard or use for stock. Turn chicken breast side up. Use your hands to push breast downward and flatten. If wet, pat dry with paper towels.
Grate peel from 1 lime into a small bowl. Stir in butter, salt, pepper and chili flakes. Rub over chicken skin. Cut limes into thick slices. Place close together in the centre of a large baking sheet with shallow sides. Set chicken, breast side up, on lime slices. Leaving garlic heads unpeeled, slice off and discard top third of each head. Lightly coat garlic with a little oil. Place beside chicken. Cover garlic tops with small pieces of foil.
Roast, uncovered, in centre of preheated oven for 30 min. Continue to roast for 20 more min, basting occasionally. Increase heat to 400F (200C) and continue to roast until skin is deep golden and crispy, and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh reads 170F (77C), about 10 more min. Remove to a cutting board and let stand for 10 min before slicing. Slice each head of garlic in half. Serve chicken with roasted garlic on the side or squish cloves out of their papery skins and rub all over the chickenPreparation time 15 minutes
Roasting Time 1 hour