Slow Roast Chicken with Portuguese spice rub
As with oily fish, chicken has considerable amounts of unsaturated fats that are easily oxidised by high heat. The ideal way to cook a pasture-raised organic chicken is with a long slow cook at a low temperature (80-90 degrees is ideal, but no higher than 120 degrees Celcius) so as not to damage its delicate fatty acids. The addition of liquid (stock or water) in the pot, further assists in keeping the meat tender and the proteins digestible. Dom sells the best Chooks in Sydney: Bega Valley Pasture Raised Chickens; the most authentic free-range happy hens.
Serves 4

Ingredients:
• I organic, free-range, Chicken; we used a 1.8kg bird in this photo.
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp sweet paprika
• ½ tsp cayeen pepper
• 1 tsp unrefined sea salt
• 1 large unwaxed lemon, cut into quarters
• homemade chicken stock or spring water. Make stock using organic chicken carcasses, or you can buy it ready-made at GRUB

Optional vegetables to add to the braising liquid:
• peeled whole shallots, sweet potato sliced into ½ inch rounds, fennel wedges and whole garlic cloves, smashed.

Special equipment:
• A large, heavy based cast iron casserole dish, with lid.

Instructions:
• Preheat oven to 90 degrees C (195 degrees F)
• In a mortar and pestle, make a paste of the garlic, oregano, spices, salt and a teaspoon of lemon juice from your lemon. Alternately, you can just mix in a small bowl.
• Rub the mix all over the bird and inside the cavity
• Quarter the lemon and stuff inside cavity
• Place in your cast iron pot
• Pour in enough stock or water to approx 1 inch deep around the chicken. If you’re adding vegetables, put then in now.
• Cut a piece of baking paper the size of the lid of your pot, and place over the chicken, pushing down around it. This will help to keep it moist.
• Put the lid on and cook for at least 4 ½ hours.
• Baste with some of the cooking liquid and cook for another 30-45 minutes with the lid off. If you like, you can turn the temperature up to 120 for this last part to help crisp and colour the skin, otherwise leave at 90. Depending on the size of the bird, it will be ready when a leg pulls easily away and juices are clear. Note: it’s near impossible to over-cook it if you leave it at 90.
• Lift chicken out of the pot and strain and reserve cooking liquid; drizzle over chicken when serving, and store the rest in the fridge to use as a broth or base to soups and other stews.
• Serve chicken surrounded by the vegetables, with a salad of baby greens, fresh coriander, lime and sea salt.