Chicken with Provençal stuffing

This roast chicken has an unusual but delightful stuffing with a Provençal theme.  The principal ingredients are bacon, olives and capers.  It is delicious hot but also lovely cold.

Preparation Time: 30 Mins

Cooking Time: 70 Mins

Total Time: 2 Hrs

Ingredients

For 6 servings…

1                    Chicken     

                     Olive oil    

                     Pepper      

                     Salt          

For the stuffing

100 gms          Bacon  - smoked lardons        

1 tbs               Shallot  - chopped finely         

100 gms          Chicken livers  - cut into small pieces      

4 tbs               Olive oil    

2 cloves           Garlic  - chopped finely          

2 tbs               Parsley  - chopped    

4 fillets            Anchovies  

1 glass            Wine  - white          

100 gms          Olives  - black stoned

1 tbs               Capers      

Method

To prepare the stuffing…

Gently sauté the bacon, shallot and chicken livers in the olive oil for five minutes.  Then add the garlic, parsley and anchovies and continue cooking for a further two minutes.  Add the wine and allow everything to bubble up, before turning down the heat and simmering for five minutes or until the livers are cooked.  Add the olives and capers and allow the mixture to cool.

To prepare and stuff the chicken…

Stuff the chicken with the stuffing, truss, rub with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast in an oven at 180°C for one hour - starting breast-side down and basting two or three times during cooking.  Turn over the chicken so it is breast-side up for the last 20 minutes.

Carve and serve with scoops of the stuffing.

Wine recommendations

It can be a red or a white wine.

Conventional

     Côtes du Rhône

Interesting

     Chénas

     Chinon blanc

     Côtes du Luberon

     Riesling