Coarse Sea Salt Pan-Roasted Chicken – Cantonese Style, 古法鹽焗雞

There has been a misconception of this recipe for years! A lot of people expect to taste the saltiness of the “Sea Salt” when the chicken is done. Don’t expect it! The salt we use in this recipe doesn’t penetrate inside the meat of the chicken. We are using the salt as a medium to enhance the overall aroma of the chicken. During roasting, the chicken fat and juice will drip down to the salt. The heat of the salt evaporates the fat and juice back to the meat of the chicken, along with the smell of the ocean (sea salt). It gives more complexity and depth to the chicken when served.

Use organic chicken and roast only ½ a chicken at a time
Use coarse sea salt or rock salt – unprocessed
Use a cast iron pan to fry the salt to reach higher temperature, about 400F˚.

Sea salt roasted chicken with Zedoary dipping sauce

Ingredients:

Organic chicken ½ (pad dry)

Parchment paper 3 ft

Zedoary powder 1/2 teaspoon (沙姜粉)

Kosher salt 1 teaspoon

White pepper ½ teaspoon

Coarse sea salt 4 cups

Tin foil 1 ½ ft

Dipping sauce:

Zedoary powder 1 teaspoon

Kosher salt 1 teaspoon

Oil 2 tablespoons

Use a small pan to heat up oil until smoke coming off the edge. Mix zedoary powder and salt in a small plate and pour hot oil over it, mix well.

Method:

Mix the zedoary powder, kosher salt and white pepper in a small bowl. Sprinkle ¼ of the mixture onto the bony side of the chicken. Turn the chicken over and sprinkle the rest of the marinade onto the skin side. Set aside of an hour so the taste can penetrate in the chicken. Put the chicken on the parchment paper and wrap it around like an envelope.

Put four cups of coarse sea salt in a large cast iron pan. Use high heat to fry the salt and turn it over frequently. When you see white steam coming out from the pan, fold the tin foil like the shape of a small pan with an edge and position the tin foil on top of the salt. Put the chicken (wrapped with parchment paper) on top of the tin foil and cover it with a lid.

Roast the chicken in a 425F˚ pre-heated oven for an hour. Take the pan out from the oven and set it on the counter. Keeps the lid on for another 15 minutes for self roasting. Take the lid off and transfer the chicken on a plate. Set aside the remaining chicken juice on the tin foil. Let the chicken rest for another 15 minutes before cutting. Spoon the chicken juice on top of the chicken before serving. Serve with dipping sauce.