Poulet Grand-Mère

INGREDIENTS

ROAST CHICKEN
1 chicken, weighing 2kg, preferably corn-fed, with giblets

40g of unsalted butter

salt

freshly ground black pepper

STUFFING
100g of bread, day-old, cut into 1cm cubes

chicken giblets

50g of duck fat

1 large ripe tomato, peeled and chopped

100g of pitted green olives, chopped

10 garlic cloves, large, chopped

4 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked

fleur de sel

freshly ground black pepper

METHOD

1. To prepare the chicken for roasting, pull out any pads of fat at the entrance to the body cavity. Wash the bird inside and out, then pat dry and set aside

2. To make the stuffing, heat the duck fat in a large frying pan and add the bread, cooking until lightly browned. Remove with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl

3. Lightly brown the heart and liver from the giblets for 3–5 minutes in the same fat, then mix with the bread cubes in the bowl

4. Add the tomato, olives, garlic and thyme leaves to the bowl, mix well and season to taste

5. Cool the stuffing until tepid, then spoon into the chicken’s cavity. Tie the legs with string to hold the stuffing inside

6. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4

7. Heat the butter in a large frying pan and brown the bird all over. Place in a roasting pan, scatter with salt and pepper and roast for 1 1/2 hours, basting occasionally until the juices run clear

8. Remove the bird from the oven and set aside for 10–15 minutes to rest. Carve, allowing each person some breast and leg meat and some of the cooked stuffing from inside. Drizzle the pan jus over each serving