Entertaining: Impress Your Friends with Green Chicken

 By Karen

Green chicken. Sounds alarming, right? Perhaps hatched from green eggs? But no. Green chicken is great for casual dinner parties, with potatoes roasted in the same oven, Sauvignon Blanc (like my idol, Julia Child, start drinking as you cook), maybe a salad (beets would look gorgeous with green chicken but my husband believes beets will kill you so we never have them) and baguettes. And some super rich dessert. My husband cannot get enough Green Chicken. This recipe, adapted from the New York Times’ recipe for Green Goddess Roasted Chicken, serves four to six.   

First, make the dressing. Blend until smooth:

1 ½ cups buttermilk or plain yogurt

1 packed cup or so of whatever greens are in the market--basil, coriander, parsley, arugula--all the same or a mix

Up to ¼ or ½ cup chopped chives or onions

1 container anchovies and oil (this is the secret ingredient, do not omit, no-one will know they are there but if they aren't the chicken will not be nearly as tasty)

Zest and juice of one lime

1 teaspoon black pepper--or 1 jalapeno--or both if you like spicy

2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt.  The marinade needs to be quite salty, but reserve some of it, maybe one third, for sauce, and put a bit less salt in that portion.

Next, take about 5 pounds of chicken--two halves, all thighs, breasts, whatever you like. Pour the marinade over the chicken and let it marinate, refrigerated, for at least 6 hours, or overnight. Refrigerate the reserved sauce.

When you are ready to cook, heat the oven to 500 degrees. Take the reserved sauce out of the refrigerator, as it should be served room temperature. Shake as much of the marinade as possible off the chicken pieces, and put them on a baking sheet. Pat the tops dry, and drizzle with olive oil. Roast for 30-45 minutes. Cut up some potatoes, mix them with olive oil and salt, and roast with the chicken.

When done, the chicken will be pleasingly mahogany. Not green. Let it rest for a few minutes, then serve with the reserved sauce, the potatoes, the bread, the wine, the beets, whatever you like. And invite my husband over.