- 1
Ingredients
- 1 quart/ 1 liter water
- 1/2 cup/100 grams Bromley Estate Blend tea leaves
- 2 -inch/5-centimeter piece of ginger root, peeled and sliced into coins
- 6 cloves garlic, peeled then crushed to release their aroma
- 1 cup/250 milliliters vegetable stock (homemade or canned will do)
- 1 large whole roasting chicken (2 to 3 pounds/1 to 1.5 kilograms), well washed and dried
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon/4 grams granulated sugar or to taste
- 2 ounces/60 grams unsalted (sweet) butter
Preparation
Step 1
Bring the water to a boil. Add the tea leaves and infuse for 3 minutes. Strain through a fine-meshed sieve into a bowl, extracting as much liquid as possible, then pour into a clean saucepan. Add ginger, garlic, and vegetable stock and return liquid to a boil. Remove from heat, sieve out and discard the solids, and reserve liquid.
Preheat the oven to 450o F/232oC. Brush a heavy 12-inch/30-cewntimeter skillet lightly with olive oil. Salt and pepper the chicken inside and out. Place chicken into heavy skilled and pour about 1/2 cup/120 milliliters of the brewed tea over it. Roast for about an hour until juices run clear, basting with tea mixture every 20 minutes or so. Test the chicken with a meat thermometer; at 170o F/77o C, it is done. Skim the fat from the liquid in the pan. Remove the chicken to a cutting board, carve into 8 pieces, and place on a platter to keep warm. Reduce the basting liquid to coating consistency, adjusting the seasoning to taste. This dish is even more delicious with a generous grind of black pepper. Add sugar to taste.
Off heat, add butter to the reduced liquid in small bits, whisking until blended. Strain sauce through a fine-meshed sieve and pour into a heated sauceboat. Serve immediately. We suggest such accompaniments as wild rice, sautéed portobello mushrooms, and curly (Savoy) cabbage, as desired.
Serves 4.