Lemon and chilli marinated chicken

Some dishes take me way back to my childhood days - roasted chicken is one of them. My mom loved it and used to make it deliciously well: nicely golden and crisp on the outside and tender on the inside, the meat almost falling off the bones. So good! I can almost taste it as I write this. :D

I immediately thought of mom when I saw the “simple chicken classics” spread on the latest DH magazine. Since I had some marvelous lemons around, this is the recipe I chose.

Oh, and before I forget, I have added an ingredient measure list to the blog that might be useful to some of you.

Lemon and chilli marinated chicken
slightly adapted from Donna Hay magazine

1 x 1.5g whole chicken, butterflied – or use your favorite chicken parts
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
juice of 2 lemons
1 tablespoon chilli flakes*
1/3 cup (80ml) olive oil – I used garlic infused olive oil

Place the chicken on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Place the garlic, salt, paprika, lemon zest and juice, chilli flakes and oil in a bowl and whisk to combine. Pour over the chicken and marinate in the fridge for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 200ºC/390ºF. Roast the chicken for 35-40 minutes or until cooked through – I roasted mine for 1 ½ hours to get it really golden.

* the chicken turned out spicy and I loved it but my husband thought it was a bit too hot; therefore, adjust the chilli flakes amount according to your taste.

Serves 4-6