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Fast Five-Spice Roast Chicken

No need to wait until Chinese New Year to roast up this irresistible aromatic chicken. Use any cut you want - but bone-in breasts and budget-priced legs work particularly well. Rice is essential, of course, for soaking up the intensely flavoured braising liquid. Just scatter with lots of green onions and complete this low-cal dinner with bok choy or peas with shredded lettuce.
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 45 min

Ingredients

4 - 6 bone-in chicken pieces
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup sherry
or
¼ cup mirin
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp ginger, fresh, minced
2 tsp Chinese five-spice powder
2 tsp sesame oil
½ tsp black pepper, freshly ground

Food Safety

Before you start, wash all surfaces and your hands with soap and warm water, and remember to wash your hands, utensils and cutting boards after they touch raw meat or eggs. Avoid cross-contamination by using a different cutting board for your meat and other ingredients. Make sure you’re cooking to safe temperatures and chilling any leftovers within two hours. For more food safety tips, visit our Food Safety at Home Section.

Steps

  1. Preheat the oven to 375°F(190°C). Choose an oven dish with shallow sides just large enough to snugly hold chicken, such as a 9 x 13 inch (3 L) baking dish. Remove chicken skin or leave on as you wish. Measure the remaining ingredients into the dish and mix together.

  2. Place chicken in the pan, turning to coat both sides. Then arrange bone-side up. Roast in the middle of the oven for 30 minutes, basting partway through. (If at any time the liquid in the pan seems to be drying up, add a little water to avoid burning.) Then turn chicken, meaty side up, and continue roasting until temperature taken with an instant read thermometer in the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165°F (74°C), about 15 to 20 minutes. Baste occasionally during this time.

  3. Remove chicken to dinner plates and spoon enough pan sauce over each to moisten. Pour the remaining into a bowl or pitcher for adding when wanted for dipping.

Helpful Tip

If you love Chinese but don’t love high fat dishes, this one’s for you. Simply remove the chicken skin before roasting and it rings in under 200 calories and it’s shy on fat and bursting with protein.

Nutrition Info

Per 305 g serving Amount
Calories370
Protein62 g
Fat7 g
Saturated Fat2 g
Carbohydrate8 g
Sugar5 g
Cholesterol155 mg
Sodium680 mg
Per 305 g serving % Daily Value
Potassium23
Calcium4
Iron15
Vitamin A2
Vitamin C8
Vitamin B685
Vitamin B1251
Folate6
Zinc25