Italian-Style Roast Chicken with Parmesan-Crusted Bread
Roasting a butterflied chicken with all the classic Italian flavours of garlic, tomato, olive oil, Parmesan, basil and lemon always makes for a winning dish. It’s a simple one-course meal and the classic side dishes of pasta, potatoes or rice can be left out. Instead, the succulent ingredients are piled onto a slice of toasted bread with a Parmesan crust.
Parmesan Crusted Bread to Soak up Delicious Roasting Pan Juices
Arrange the toast on a plate, top with sliced chicken and pour over the juices from the roasting tray. Finish with more grated Parmesan, a drizzle of olive oil, lemon juice and herbs. If you like a kick, feel free to add a touch of chilli. The toast will soak up all the bold flavours, making every mouthful irresistibly moreish. Serve with a chilled glass of wine and enjoy!
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Roast Chicken on Parmesan Crusted Toast
Mouth-watering, parmesan-crusted toast to lay underneath juicy chicken topped with a white wine-chicken-rich-fat-sauce, fresh herbs, citrus and creamy roasted garlic bulbs.
Servings: 4 – 6
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken spatchcocked
- 6 tomatoes cut in half
- 6 large cloves garlic peeled
- 1 large twig rosemary leaves removed and roughly chopped
- 2 twigs thyme leaves removed from stem
- 200ml white wine
- 125ml chicken stock
- Squeeze of lemon juice
- Olive oil for drizzling
- Sea salt flakes
- 1 loaf crusty white bread, sliced thickly
- Butter
- 60gm grated parmesan cheese
- Basil and or parsely leaves for garnish
Instructions
- Using a large roasting tray, pour in the white wine and place the spatchcocked chicken on top, skin side up. Arrange the tomatoes and garlic bulbs around the chicken, then scatter the rosemary and thyme around the tray—avoiding the top of the chicken
- Drizzle each tomato half with a little olive oil. Do not put olive oil on the chicken, there is enough chicken fat in the skin and adding more oil will prevent the skin from going crispy.
- Season the chicken and tomatoes with sea salt flakes. Roast at 200°C for 45 minutes, then increase the heat to 220°C and roast for a further 10 minutes. This will help the skin crisp up beautifully and allow the tomatoes to become charred and sticky
- Carefully remove the chicken from the roasting tray and pour in the chicken stock. Place the tray on the stovetop and bring the pan juices to a boil. Gently crush the tomatoes and garlic bulbs into the sauce, then let it bubble for a minute or two until slightly thickened. Remove from the heat and cover to keep warm
- Add butter to a frying pan and fry the bread until golden brown. Flip the bread and generously sprinkle the toasted side with grated Parmesan. Once the underside is nicely toasted, quickly flip the bread again to allow the Parmesan to melt. Remove from the pan and repeat with the remaining slices
- Carve the chicken into your desired pieces. To plate the dish, start by laying down a slice of Parmesan toast, then top with chicken. Spoon the roasted tomato and garlic sauce over the chicken and toast. Squeeze over lemon juice. Drizzle with olive oil and finish with grated Parmesan and chopped herbs.
Notes
The best parmesan cheese comes from Modena, Italy. Click here for more information
