Wednesday, August 26

Roast Chicken with Rice-Pistachio Stuffing

I just bought Mark Bittmans' How To Cook Everything, do any of you have it? I've heard all about it in the blogosphere and decided to give him a try. This book is like an encyclopedia of everything you would want to cook. Ever. It is amazing. I knew I had to make this recipe when I read it. Plus, I had a friend coming over for dinner that night so it was the perfect opportunity to try out something new and a little more festive. And even if it didn't come out good, being the good friend that she is, she wouldn't mind a bowl of cereal for dinner :)

 At first, stuffing a roast chicken may sound daunting (believe me, I was very nervous) but it was surprisingly simple! Like any roast chicken, the oven does all the work. Plus, normally when you buy a whole chicken the inner cavity is already cleaned out and ready to go!

I adapted this recipe slightly form Mark's original recipe. He used white basmati rice as is but I couldn't help but have some color in the rice. I sprinkled some Turmeric, a spice that gives gorgeous yellow color to rice. The results were fantastic! And honestly, who doesn't love pistachios? Especially when they are sauteed in butter. MMmm. On to the recipe!

Roast Chicken with Rice-Pistachio Stuffing
adapted from Mark Bittman
1/2 cup basmati
3 tablespoons butter or olive oil
1/4 cup pistachios, shelled
Turmeric, enough to give some color (I just kept adding little by little until it reached the color I wanted)
Salt 'n' peppa to taste
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 whole chicken, interior cavity cleaned (the butcher at the market already did this for me)

1 Bring a large pot of water to boil and season with salt. Add the basmati rice and simmer until tender, but not mush (this is very important). Wash and drain the cooked rice in a colander. Twice. Preheat oven to 400 F.
2 Heat 2 tablespoons of the butter or oil in a large skillet and toss in the pistachios. Stir for about 1 minute, add the cooked rice and stir. Season with salt, pepper, and turmeric until desired level of color.
3 Add lemon juice to the rice mixture. This mixture can be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 2 days.
4 Stuff the chicken loosely with the rice/nut mixture. If there is some left over, leave it for the side dish.
5 Rub the chicken with the remaining butter or oil and season well with salt 'n' peppa. Place on a rack in a roasting pan (I use disposable ones) and cook for about 1.5 hours, depending on the size of your bird. Baste with oil or butter and pan juices about halfway through.
6 Remove chicken from the oven when done and let it rest for 5 minutes. Carve and serve with stuffing and pan juices.

25 comments:

Winchester Manor said...

The photo is not grossing me out at all...it's making my mouth water! Another great recipe...thank you!!

Chef Fresco said...

Nice work! I've never stuffed a chicken either - I think you got the perfect ingredients. I need to check out that book!

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

A great recipe! This chicken dish looks fabulous!

Cheers,

Rosa

ChichaJo said...

I love the photo! I think it's very appetizing :) Simple roast chicken, or like this with a nice stuffing, is always a winner in my book!

♥peachkins♥ said...

This is very delicious! I love roasted chicken.. stuffing it with rice makes it more appetizing!

Leslie said...

It sooooo doesnt gross me out! I think it is a beautiful photo!

Stacey Snacks said...

Z,
what would be gross about this photo? do some people have an aversion to rice?

when you say "cavity cleaned out?" did the butcher do something that I wouldn't normally get when I buy a whole chicken?

grace said...

that's a pretty outstanding bird, zoe. the stuffing sounds phenomenal--i've never had nuts in stuffing, much less pistachios!

nora@ffr said...

love the rice stuffing in ye roast chicken :) yummm!! want to prep this for dinner :)

Unknown said...

Oh yum... I love Mark Bittman. You really can't go wrong with him. Thanks for posting this!

Faith said...

Roast chicken is one of my favorite meals, and this stuffing looks really unique and full of flavor!

Reeni said...

I didn't know a roasted chicken could get any better! This stuffing looks excellent!!

mycookinghut said...

Looks like a great idea!!

Olga said...

I have his Vegetarian cookbook. LOVE him, but don't love the book: it's too enormous and doesn't have pictures and most of the recipes are too simple.

I've never cooked a whole chicken :)
LOVE pistachio nuts.

Jennifer said...

This looks AMAZING!!! I dont have that cookbook but would love it! Ive been meaning to for a long time!

Half Baked said...

I've never stuffed a chicken either, after seeing this I definitely need to try it soon. Your chicken looks soo tasty!!

Juliana said...

Wow, this chicken looks delicious, stuffed with rice and pistachio...yummie!

Ciao Chow Linda said...

Thanks for stopping by my blog and allowing me to find yours - and it's got some great recipes and photos. I would love to try that stuffing with pistachios.

Soma said...

This looks so tantalizing & memory stirring. reminds me of the time when my grandma would stuff the chicken with rice, nuts, raisins & caramelized onions. Heaven!! after that i could never take fancy on stuffings with bread.

LK- Healthy Delicious said...

so beautiful!!!

Noob Cook said...

I love the rice stuffing, this looks absolutely divine :)

Anonymous said...

The rice & pistachio stuffing sounds really wonderful! My family would love this recipe - they love rice and especially pistachios!

Kerstin said...

The rice stuffing sounds so delicious with the pistachios - I love the picture too!

Anonymous said...

My family were looking for exactly this recipe and we are still lauhing at the many comments from people who have never stuffed a chicken! Do you buy in every night?

Still, we are looking forward to trying this recipe, we might actually add a few more ingredients.

We will happily add our comment once we have tasted the results as none of the comments mentioned the taste

Anonymous said...

My family were looking for exactly this recipe and we are still lauhing at the many comments from people who have never stuffed a chicken! Do you buy in every night?

Still, we are looking forward to trying this recipe, we might actually add a few more ingredients.

We will happily add our comment once we have tasted the results as none of the comments mentioned the taste