Ingredients
Ingredients:
* 1 whole chicken (2-2.2kg)
* 30g butter
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* 1 tbsp fresh herbs, chopped
2% Brine:
* 1L buttermilk
* 1L water
* 40g kosher salt
* 20g brown sugar
* 10 cloves garlic, crushed
* Herb bundle (whatever you have on hand – we used rosemary and tarragon)
* 1 tbsp black peppercorns
* 1 tsp cayenne pepper
Cooking Method
1. Toast black peppercorns and salt in a dry pan and add them into the buttermilk. Stir until all salt is dissolved.
2. Add water, garlic and herb bundle, mix well.
3. Pat dry and place the chicken in large ziploc bag and pour in the buttermilk brine in.
4. Place in the fridge to brine for 6-12 hours, flipping the bag once in between.
5. Take chicken out 1 hour before roasting to come up room temperature.
6. Preheat oven to 220°C.
7. Remove chicken from the bag, scrape off as much buttermilk as possible. Truss the chicken with twine and place it on a roasting rack.
8. Slide the chicken to the middle of the oven and roast for 10 minutes to brown.
9. While waiting, infuse minced garlic and herbs in butter over low heat.
10. Turn the heat down to 180°C and roast for 1 hour 15 minutes (15 minutes per 500g weight of chicken). Rotate the roasting tray (if needed) and if the skin gets too brown, cover chicken loosely with foil.
11. Transfer chicken to a platter and brush melted herb butter all over. Allow chicken to rest for 15 minutes before carving and serving.
