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Jerusalem roasted chicken with clementines

Jerusalem's Roasted Chicken with Clementines and Arak

Course Main Course
Cuisine Middle Eastern

Ingredients

  • 6½ tbsp arak ouzo, or Pernod
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 tbsp orange juice preferably, freshly squeezed
  • 3 tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp grain mustard
  • 2 tbsp light brown sugar
  • 2 medium fennel bulbs about 1 pound total
  • 1 large chicken cut into 8 pieces (ask your butcher), or about 2¾ lbs skin on, bone in chicken thighs
  • 4 clementines
  • 1 tbsp thyme leaves
  • 2½ tsp fennel seeds lightly crushed
  • 1 cup parsley for garnish

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees (or if marinating, do this when you're ready to cook; see below).
  2. Put the arak, olive oil, orange juice, lemon juice, mustard, and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl. Add 2½ teaspoons salt, and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Whisk well and set aside.
  3. Trim the fennel bulbs, discarding a few bitter outer layers. Cut each bulb in half lengthwise, then cut each half into 4 wedges. Cut the clementines, unpeeled, horizontally into quarter-inch slices.
  4. Add the cut fennel bulbs, clementines, chicken, thyme, and fennel seeds to the set-aside liquid. Stir well with your hands. If you have time, marinate in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. Don't worry if you don't have time.
  5. If you marinated, remove from fridge to let the chicken return to room temperature; meanwhile preheat the oven. Otherwise, the oven should be almost preheated by now.
  6. Transfer the chicken, skin side up, together with the marinade into a backing dish large enough to accommodate everything (ideally) on one layer. A lasagna pan works well.
  7. Roast in the oven 35-45 minutes until the chicken is colored and cooked through.
  8. Remove chicken, fennel, and clementines onto a serving plate. Pour the cooking liquid into a small saucepan and place over medium heat until sauce is reduced by one-third. Pour over the chicken, garnishing with some chopped parsley.