Sour Fruit Azerbaijan Stuffed Chicken
Roast Chicken, Azerbaijan Style
The main dish for our Azerbaijan Grand Prix menu was an incredibly moist roast chicken with a twist – a sour dried fruit stuffing. I came across the inspiration for this recipe while perusing through my cookbook “The Legendary Cuisine of Persia” which specifically called out this style of roast chicken as Azerbaijani style. while researching dishes for this grand prix I was on the hunt for something to utilize a beautiful chicken I had just purchased from the farmers market from Sickel’s Meats.
The stuffing is a combination of spiced sautéed onions and rehydrated dried sour fruits. The selection of fruits can vary from cherries, apricots, or even dried barberries if you can get your hands on them. For this recipe, I went with cranberries, peaches, and raisins from my local middle eastern grocery store. I also through in some chopped walnuts for good luck.
Roast in Saffron & Butter
Another part of this recipe that makes it distinctly Azerbaijani is the roasting liquid. Typically when I roast a chicken I use the typical mirepoix base for the gravy, but for this recipe you can skip the mirepoix and instead baste the chicken in a warm mix of saffron water, melted butter, and lemon juice. Cross the chicken legs to seal in the stuffing and roast at 325°F for 1.5-2 hours, basting with the butter & lemon juice every 30 minutes.
This chicken recipe is best served with sweet rice with raisins or my Dill & Herb Rice Plov.
Azerbaijan Fruit Stuffed Chicken
The sour fruit stuffing is the perfect complement to a roasted farm-fresh chicken. Serve with herby plov.
Ingredients
Stuffing
- 1 tbsp butter
- ½ small onion, chopped
- ¼ cup walnuts, chopped
- ½ cup dried peaches, chopped
- ½ cup raisins
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- 1½ cup boiling water
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
Roast Chicken
- 1 large pinch safflower threads
- 2 tbsp water
- ½ cup butter
- 2 lemon, juiced
- 1 whole chicken
- Salt & Pepper
Instructions
Stuffing
- In a shallow bowl mix the dried peaches, raisins, and cranberries with the boiling water. Let sit for 15 min.
- In a frying pan, melt the butter until frothy. Add the chopped onion and saute until soft and golden. Add the chopped walnuts. Strain the dried fruit and add it to the onions. Saute for 3-5 minutes, then add the tomato paster. Saute for 3-5 more minutes then set aside to cool.
Roast Chicken
- Preheat the oven for 325°F.
- In a small saucepan, melt the butter, hot water, saffron, and lemon juice. Bring to a light boil and simmer for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and set aside.
- Place the chicken in a shallow roasting dish. Pat the chicken dry with paper towel and stuff with cooled stuffing. To seal the chicken, cut a small slit in the chicken skin across from each chicken leg, and insert the opposite chicken leg end into the skin, essentially criss-crossing the legs closed. Alternatively, you can sew chicken shut with poultry thread.
- Pour the melted butter mix over the chicken and season generously with salt. Cover the chicken with aluminum foil or a lid. Roast for 45 minute covered to keep the chicken moist. Remove the foil/lid and continue roasting for another 45-60 minutes, basting every 20 minutes with the butter mix, until the chicken skin is a dark golden colour.
