Deeply flavorful, crispy skin, and a million and one ways you can use this Lemon, Ginger, and Molasses Chicken, you cannot go wrong with this winner of a chicken dinner!

I have been on a Spatchcocking kick lately. And a solid campaign to purchase more decorative rugs for the house, though unfortunately for my impatient self solid office furniture needed to be acquired before my husband gets into his insanely busy season. But let us rewind just a sentence and focus on the Spatchcocking for a moment. Spatchcocking, or butterflying, a whole bird then roasting it at a scarily high temperature renders the BEST roast chicken meat I have ever eaten. The skin crisps and browns so beautifully, then the meat comes out so juicy, tender, and flavorful it is kind of ridiculous. So other than the mass quantities of Grinders we’ve had in our rotation lately, I have been experimenting with different marinades for chicken and this Lemon, Ginger, and Molasses Chicken is a sure winner, winner, chicken dinner.

The Molasses brings a deeper, more intense sweet flavor to intertwine with the spicy notes of Fresh Ginger and acidity of the Lemon Juice in this Lemon, Ginger, and Molasses Chicken.

It is fascinating to see how each person’s palate develops throughout their lifetime. Growing up in the the little quiet corner of New England, much of the “exotic” foods and flavors I love as an adult were extremely Americanized in my youth - Tex-Mex flavors wit hard crunchy shells for Mexican influence, and very typical Americanized Chinese foods was about as adventurous as things got. It was not until I moved first to California, then settled here in the Southwest, that I truly started understanding the nuances and differences between different chilis, “exotic” Asian spices, and learning there was a plethora of traditional dishes that did not even make it onto restaurant menus. Fresh Ginger is an aromatic that did not play a large roll in the foods growing up. It’s a flavor that I am pretty obsessed with as an adult, because there are so many inventive applications that you can use it in and have it be incredibly delicious.

Asian and American foods are incredibly easy to fuse together, and one of the most delicious ways to do that in my opinion is to make an incredible Asian influenced marinade and roast a whole chicken. There are SO many advantages of roasting a whole bird at home, and you can create several dishes from a single bird depending on how you utilize the chicken. With one whole bird, I end up with a traditional dinner of protein, starch, and vegetable, then some chicken in a fried rice or a chicken salad, and then can use the bones to make some excellent homemade stock for soups and deglazing for pan sauces.

Spatchcocking, or butterflying, a whole bird yields an incredibly juicy, tender chicken that is unbelievably delicious.

So this marinade is incredibly special and the resulting chicken is very versatile as it goes perfectly with American sides like mashed potatoes, roasted or sauteed vegetables, or over a salad, OR you can serve the chicken in a fried rice or in a quick stir fry. The flavor is robust yet delicate, but balanced really well to be adapted into all different sorts of American influenced or Asian influenced dishes.First, you take the aromatics, fresh ginger, garlic, and scallions, and blend them up with some oil, thyme, lemon juice, spices, and Molasses. Taste, then adjust the salt and pepper levels if needed. You marinate the already butterflied chicken breast side down overnight, then baste the roasting bird with a bit of the marinade you reserved as it roasts.

The resulting flavor penetrates deep into the meat, and the molasses adds this rich, darker flavor than honey which is so typically used as a sweetener. The lemon juice adds such a beautiful acidity, but the ginger is really what ties the entire marinade together with its bright, fresh, warmly spicy flavor. It draws out the sweeter notes from the molasses and tangles with the caramelized sweet skin that the sugar in the molasses creates. Lemon and ginger are two flavors that do great with sweet and savory applications, but the scallions and garlic balance out the fruity sweetness with their rounded earthy tones.

While roasting, the Molasses in the marinade caramelizes and browns, yielding intense flavor in the skin.

I definitely think that marinating the chicken overnight is the best way to ensure the flavor is going to penetrate throughout the entirety of the bird, and in all honesty it probably takes a half hour to break down the chicken, pat it dry, poke holes in it, and get it in the fridge to marinate. The marinade comes together in about 5 minutes as you let the blender do all the work of emulsifying it into a nice, fragrant marinade. Pretty easy, peasy stuff, and then dinner prep is pretty much done the next day. For all of us, sitting down at the table (or maybe gathering around the kitchen island standing) is the best part of each day, eating amazing food that does not take crazy amounts of time to prepare, laughing with the ones you love best. :

Serve with additional Lemon Slices and chopped Scallions for additional pops of flavor with this Lemon, ginger, and Molasses Chicken.

Lemon, Ginger and Molasses Chicken

Author: Iris Anna Gohn

Servings: 4 to 6

Throwing together this marinade is very quick and easy, and I’d say you can get the chicken marinating a good 24 hours before you plan to roast it - even up to 48. The more time consuming part is breaking down the chicken, but if you have a good, strong pair of poultry shears it will make the process much easier and smoother.

For this particular marinade, if you choose to make stock with the chicken bones after, adding a chunk of fresh ginger with the other vegetables will help give you a really nice base for a faux pho ga broth, a Vietnamese rice noodle soup with chicken. Truly, making your own chicken stock at home is going to blow your mind in how much better the flavor is than the slightly neutral tasting stuff from the grocery store.

The first night I served this, I made mashed potatoes and some sautéed vegetables to go with it. I put the bird in the oven and started boiling my potatoes about 10 minutes after. This way, the potatoes were just about don when I pulled the chicken from the oven, allowing me the time to mash the potatoes while the chicken was resting before carving it to serve. The leftover meat is delicious in Asian influenced cabbage salads, wraps/sandwiches, or in fried rice. It’d also be great in a quick stir fry - the meat is juicy enough that it holds up well to reheating without drying out.

For help breaking down the chicken so it is beautifully butterflied, THIS GUIDE is excellent for reference. I also poke holes in the breast and thigh meat to help the marinade penetrate thoroughly and flavor the chicken even further.

Ingredients

For the Marinade:

1 1/2 Tbsp Minced Garlic (4-5 Cloves)
2 Tbsp Minced Ginger (about 1 inch fresh Ginger Root)
2 Tbsp Chopped Scallions (1 Scallion, white parts included with the green)
1 Tsp loosely packed Fresh Thyme Leaves
1 Tsp Sea Salt
1/4 Tsp Fresh Cracked Black Pepper + more to taste
1 Tbsp Molasses
5 Tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice (2 Juiced Lemons)
2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

For the Chicken/Serving:

4 1/2 Pound Whole Chicken
Coarse Kosher Salt, for Sprinkling
Fresh Cracked Black Pepper
Lemon Wedges, for serving
Chopped Scallions, for Serving

Directions

For the Marinade:

In a blender, add the garlic, ginger, scallions, thyme, molasses, salt and pepper, olive oil and lemon juice. Blend to combine until it is a nice, smooth consistency. Taste, and adjust salt and pepper if necessary.
Reserve 1/4 o the marinade to use for basting when you roast the chicken.
In a 9x13 pan, thoroughly rub the prepared chicken in the remaining marinade. Do not be afraid to massage the marinade directly onto the meat under the skin. When every bit of the chicken has been coated, flip the chicken so the skin side is face down in the excess marinade and loosely cover with foil. Refrigerate for a minimum of 24 hours.

To Roast the Chicken:

Preheat oven to 500 F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy cleanup, then fit a wire cooling rack in the baking pan. Spray with non-stick spray.
While the oven is preheating, remove the chicken from the fridge and let rest for a half hour to take the chill off the meat before roasting. This will help the chicken cook more evenly and the oven will be terrifically blazing to crisp up the skin when you place it in there.
Place the chicken skin side up on the prepared baking sheet, taking care to tuck the wings under and that the chicken is laying pretty evenly. Crack some extra black pepper and sprinkle a generous pinch of Kosher Salt over the skin as well.
Roast for 20 minutes, then brush the entire chicken with the reserved marinade. Return to oven for 10 minutes, then baste entire chicken again with more marinade. At this point, check to see how browned/caramelized the skin is, and you may choose to cover the chicken with aluminum foil so the sugar does not burn for the remainder of the roasting time.
Roast another 10-15 minutes (45-55 minutes total) until the internal temperature of the breast meat is at 160. The chicken will continue cooking after you pull it from the oven, covered in the aluminum foil.
Rest the chicken for at least 10 minutes, then carve and serve.