Salt Roasted Chicken With Marinade

Directions

1. Method: Salt-roasting
2. [This marinade can also be used on roasted duck. S.C.]
3. Fill the chicken with the marinade, skewer it shut, and allow it to dry for 1 1/2 hrs.
4. 1. Wrap the chicken in a large piece of caul fat or possibly cheesecloth soaked in oil.
5. 2. Heat the salt in a pot [heavy Dutch oven, big wok or possibly whatever can take the heat. S.C.] on top of the stove over a low flame or possibly in the oven at 350F for at least 1 hour. Pour off some of the salt, leaving just sufficient to cover the bottom of the pot. Lay the chicken on top of the salt in the pot and cover it with the remaining salt. Cover the pot and bake the chicken for 1 1/2 hrs.
6. 3. Remove the chicken from the salt.
7. 4. Pull off the salt which remains caked on the chicken. Be careful, because the salt is warm.
8. 5. With a paper towel, wipe away the remaining salt. (The salt in the pot can be reused.)
9. 6. Peel off the caul fat, drain the marinade, and cut the chicken into bite-size pcs.
10. Serves 4 to 6 as a main course.
11. May be served warm or possibly cool; if cool, the chicken may be prepared up to a day in advance. (Don't reheat.)
12. Suggested beverage: Pinot Noir or possibly Burgundy
13. This is a good "guest" food. You can appear to have mastered esoteric Oriental cooking techniques without ever having actually prepared the dish before... Unless you drop the pot on the kitchen floor and set it on fire with the warm salt, it's a pretty foolproof cooking technique.
14. I'd serve this two recipe with warm mustard, a bowl of hoisin sauce, Chinkiang vinegar, spiced salt and a bowl of minced green onions for dipping along with some sweet Chinese pickles and lots of ice-cool Oriental beer. Heaven! (And rice, of course.)