Baked Cut Chicken with Fruit Recipe

Baked Cut Chicken With Fruit Recipe

Ingredients

Makes 4 To 5 Servings

• 1 3-to 4-pound cut-up chicken
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon mild paprika
• 1 medium red or yellow onion
• 8 to 10 good-sized cloves garlic, peeled (left whole)
• 20 dried apricots -pitted dried plums (prunes) -dried figs (stems trimmed off and discarded)
• 1 blood orange or navel orange

Method

1. Adjust the oven rack to the center position and preheat the oven to 375°f
2. Rinse the chicken pieces under cold running water, then pat dry with paper towels
3. If there is any extraneous fat here or there, you can trim it off with scissors and throw it away
4. Arrange the chicken pieces, skin side up, in a 9-by 13-inch baking pan
5. Combine the salt, pepper, and paprika in a small bowl, and then sprinkle this mixture over the chicken
6. Use your fingers to rub it into the skin on as much surface area as possible
7. Cut the ends off the onion, peel it, and cut it in half lengthwise (from root end to stem end)
8. Lay each half, cut side down, on a cutting board, and cut it lengthwise into ¼-inch-thick slices
9. Scatter the onion and the garlic cloves over the chicken, and then scatter the dried fruit over the chicken, packing it into the spaces between the pieces and letting some of it land on top
10. Leaving the peel on, cut the orange in half lengthwise (from top to bottom)
11. Lay each half on the cutting board and cut it crosswise into ¼-inch-thick half-moons
12. Scatter the orange slices over the chicken, and cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil
13. Bake, undisturbed, for 1 hour
14. Remove the pan from the oven, and very carefully lift the foil (the accumulated steam can be hot enough to burn you)
15. Flip the chicken pieces over, using tongs or a fork
16. Using a mitt or a pot holder, tilt the pan slightly with one hand, and using a baster or a large spoon, baste the juices over both chicken and fruit with the other hand
17. This distributes and mingles the flavors as well as the moisture, yielding delicious results
18. If any of the fruit looks dry at this point, or at subsequent bastings, just push it down into the juices
19. Cover the pan tightly with the foil again, and return it to the oven for another 20 minutes of undisturbed baking
20. Repeat the basting procedure, and then flip the chicken pieces back to skin-side-up position
21. Return the pan to the oven (without covering it this time) and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until the chicken is golden on top
22. Remove the pan from the oven, baste the chicken and fruit a few more times, and then tent it loosely with foil
23. Let it rest for about 10 minutes
24. Serve hot or warm, being sure to include a generous portion of fruit with each serving

Full List of Chicken Recipes
Full List of Fruit Recipes