About three-fourths of the dinner menu at San Francisco’s beloved Zuni
Cafe changes every night, says Russ Parsons in the Los Angeles Times.
But some dishes, such as the roast chicken, “have been on the menu
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almost every night” since chef Judy Rodgers took over in 1987. This recipe is adapted from Rodgers’ The Zuni Cafe Cookbook (W.W. Norton).
Recipe of the week
Zuni Cafe Roast Chicken
With Bread Salad
Roast chicken
1 (2-3/4 to 3-1/2 lb) chicken
4 sprigs thyme, marjoram, or rosemary
2-1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Remove and discard fat inside chicken. Rinse, thoroughly pat dry. Slide finger under skin of each breast, making 2 little pockets. Gently loosen pocket on outside of each thigh. Shove an herb sprig into each pocket.
Season chicken liberally with salt and pepper, allowing 3/4 tsp sea salt per pound. Sprinkle a little salt just inside cavity; otherwise don’t season inside. Tuck wing tips behind shoulders. Cover; refrigerate 1–3 days.
Heat oven to 475 degrees. Choose shallow flameproof roasting pan or 10-inch skillet with all-metal handle. Heat over medium heat. Wipe chicken dry, set breast-side up. It should sizzle. Place chicken in center of
oven, let sizzle and brown, about 20 minutes; skin should blister. After about 30 minutes, turn over. Roast another 10–20 minutes; flip back to recrisp breast skin, another 5–10 minutes. Total oven time 45 minutes to 1 hour.
Lift chicken from roasting pan, set on plate. Pour clear fat from pan, leaving lean drippings behind. Add 1 tbsp water to hot pan and swirl. Slash stretched skin between thighs and breasts of chicken; tilt bird and
plate over roasting pan to drain juices into drippings. Set chicken in warm spot, allow to rest.
Tilt roasting pan, skim last of fat. Place over medium-low heat, add any juice under chicken, bring to simmer. Stir and scrape to soften any hard golden drippings.
Bread salad and assembly
1/2 lb slightly stale peasant-style bread (not sourdough)
6 to 8 tbsp mild-tasting olive oil
1-1/2 tbsp white wine vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp dried currants
1 tbsp red wine vinegar, or as needed
2 tbsp pine nuts
2 to 3 garlic cloves, slivered
1/4 cup slivered scallions (about 4 scallions)
2 tbsp lightly salted chicken stock
A spoonful of pan juices from chicken
A few handfuls of arugula, frisée, or red mustard greens, carefully washed, dried, and torn
Heat broiler. Cut bread into large chunks. Carve off bottom crust, most of
top and side crust. Brush with olive oil. Broil chunks very briefly to crisp and lightly color surface. Turn over, crisp other side. Trim charred tips, tear into irregular bite-size bits—about 4 cups. Combine 1/4 cup olive oil with white wine vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. In salad bowl, toss 1/4 cup of vinaigrette with torn bread; bread will be unevenly dressed. Taste. If bland, add salt and pepper. Place currants in bowl, moisten
with red wine vinegar and 1 tbsp warm water. Set aside.
While chicken is roasting, place pine nuts in small baking dish, place in hot oven just to warm through. Add to bowl of bread. Place spoonful of olive oil in small skillet, add garlic and scallions, cook over medium-low
heat until softened. Scrape mixture into bread, fold to combine. Drain plumped currants, fold in. Dribble chicken stock over salad, fold again. Taste both a fairly saturated piece of bread and a dryish one. If either is bland, add salt, pepper, and/or a few drops of red wine vinegar; toss well.
Pile seasoned bread in 1-quart baking dish, tent with foil; set aside. Place bread in oven after you flip chicken for final time. Remove bread when chicken is done. Tip bread into salad bowl. Drizzle and toss with a spoonful of pan juices. Add greens, a drizzle of vinaigrette, fold well. Taste again. Cut chicken into pieces, spread bread salad on warm platter, nestle chicken in salad.
