Il Cucinologo
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Salt-Baked Chicken

17/11/2023

Salt-baked chicken is a tasty and relatively simple dish to prepare. The salt crust allows the chicken to cook evenly, keeping it tender and succulent inside. Here’s how to make it.

Ingredients

  • 1 whole cleaned chicken (about 500-800 g)
  • 2 kg coarse salt
  • 2 egg whites
  • Herbs such as rosemary, sage or bay leaves (to taste)
  • Black pepper (to taste)
  • Grated lemon zest (optional)

Preparation

  1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C.
  2. In a large bowl, mix the coarse salt with the egg whites until you obtain a moist consistency that allows you to mold it. You can also add your choice of herbs or lemon zest to further flavor the meat.
  3. Place some of this mixture on the bottom of a baking dish, creating a layer about 1 cm thick.
  4. Take the chicken and, if desired, make a few incisions on the thighs to help the heat penetrate better. You can also place a few sprigs of rosemary or other herbs inside the chicken to flavor it from within.
  5. Place the chicken on the salt base in the baking dish and cover completely with the remaining salt, shaping it compactly so that the chicken is entirely covered. Make sure the salt crust has no holes, otherwise steam may escape during cooking.
  6. Bake in the center of the oven and cook for about 60-70 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken.
  7. Once cooked, remove the chicken from the oven and let it rest for a few minutes. Then break the salt crust, which will have solidified, and carefully extract the chicken to avoid filling it with salt.
  8. Clean the chicken thoroughly of any residual salt, cut it as desired and serve immediately.

Salt-baked chicken is excellent served with steamed or oven-roasted vegetables, such as potatoes, carrots or fennel, which will balance its savoriness.

Trivia

The salt-cooking method is an ancient technique that allows food to cook evenly while retaining juices and aromas inside. Not only for poultry, but also for fish and meats, this technique guarantees a surprising result and, while keeping the food flavorful, it does not turn out overly salty.