Sweet Grown Alabama Recipes

Ingredients: 

• 1 fresh cleaned Sweet Grown Alabama chicken or duck cut into parts. If using duck, score the parts with a criss-cross pattern. 
• Sea salt
• Pepper
• 20-25 large fresh rosemary sprigs
• 2 whole cloves of roasted garlic (roast them in the oven until brown and soft. You can substitute for fresh chopped garlic instead of roasted.)
• 1 whole sweet onion diced
• 1 bunch green onions chopped
• 4 cups of fresh orange juice
• 2 cups of fresh lemon juice
• 4 cups of fresh pineapple juice
• 1/2 cup of white wine
• 2 tablespoons of starch dissolved in a small amount of water
• 1/4 cup of heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 stick of butter 
• 1/2 cup of drippings from the roasted poultry, strained

Optional Step 1-2 Days Before Cooking  (If using duck this step is needed)

1. Place the poultry in an air-tight container and add salt and pepper to the poultry.
2. Add 2 cups of orange juice, 2 cups of pineapple juice, 1 cup of lemon juice (this should be enough to cover 3/4 of meat in-depth. Add more if needed.)
3. Add 5-6 sprigs of rosemary.
4. Place in the fridge to marinate.
5. Rotate the poultry often while marinating.
6. Drain before roasting. 

Directions for Poultry:  

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. If using duck, sear the skin in a hot cast-iron skillet before placing it in a roasting pan.

2. In a large roasting pan add the poultry breast side down or bone side up.  

3. Add 1 cup of orange and pineapple juice, 1 cup of lemon, 1 whole clove of roasted or chopped garlic, 10-12 sprigs of rosemary, 2 tablespoons of salt and pepper, 1/2 of sweet onion and a 1/2 bunch of chopped green onion. 

4. Cover the roasting pan with lid or foil.

5. Bake for 15 minutes, then flip the meat to the opposite side. Do this every 15-20 minutes while baking. Baste often. For the last 5-8 minutes of cooking time, turn on the broiler to brown the meat tops. Turn as needed. 

6. Bake approximately 1-1.5 hours for chicken or 2.5-3 hours for a duck or until the temperature of the meat is 165 degrees. The meat from both should be fork tender and easily fall off the bone.

7. Strain and save drippings.

Directions for Sauce: 

1. In a large saucepan on medium heat, melt 1/4 stick of butter till bubbly.

2. Over med-high heat add 1/2 cup of sweet onion and sauté till brown.

3. Whisk together with the onions, 1 whole clove of roasted garlic, 1/4 cup of heavy cream, 1/2 cup of drippings, 1/2 cup of orange juice, 1/2 cup of pineapple, 1/2 cup of wine and dissolved corn starch.

4. Use an emulsion blender to evenly blend the sauce.

5. Continue to whisk until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.

6. At the end, salt and pepper to taste.

Serve: 

• Place poultry on a serving platter.
• Drizzle with sauce and reserve some for the table.
• Garnish with fresh rosemary.