ROAST CHICKEN WITH FENNEL

Roast Chicken With Fennel image

The kind of fennel we see in supermarkets (which, almost needless to say, is cultivated, not wild) is wonderful when cooked to full tenderness, so I thought it might make a good base for chicken, which is heavier than fish and takes longer to cook. The idea was that the fennel would lend its flavor to the chicken, the chicken would lend its juices to the fennel and the creation would need little else. The results were better than expected. Garnished with parsley and served with a bit of lemon (especially when caramelized, fennel can be quite sweet), the dish has an elegant look and delicious, surprisingly complex flavor.

Provided by Mark Bittman

Time 40m

Yield 4 servings

Number Of Ingredients 6

Ingredients

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, or as needed
2 bulbs fennel, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 whole (about 3-pound) chicken, cut up, or about 3 pounds drumsticks and thighs
Chopped fresh parsley leaves for garnish
Lemon wedges

Steps:

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Drizzle bottom of shallow roasting pan or baking sheet with about half the olive oil and cover it with a layer of the fennel. Overlap pieces if necessary but use whole pan. Drizzle remaining oil over fennel and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, cut up chicken if necessary and sprinkle the pieces with salt and pepper.
Top fennel with the chicken parts, skin side up. Ideally, you'll have a layer of fennel pretty much covered by a layer of chicken, but it's fine if some of the fennel roasts uncovered. Spoon some of the oil from bottom of pan over chicken. If there is not enough, drizzle additional olive oil over the chicken. Roast about 15 minutes, then baste chicken with pan drippings and rotate the pan. If necessary, adjust oven temperature so chicken browns but does not burn.
The chicken will be done in about 30 minutes. Serve each piece with some fennel and a little of the pan juices spooned over, garnished with parsley and a lemon wedge.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 693, UnsaturatedFat 37 grams, Carbohydrate 9 grams, Fat 53 grams, Fiber 4 grams, Protein 44 grams, SaturatedFat 13 grams, Sodium 855 milligrams, Sugar 5 grams, TransFat 0 grams