Chicken With Orange-apricot Stuffing

Total Time: 12 mins Preparation Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 2 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 french shallots, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup short-grain rice
• 2 teaspoons orange rind, finely grated
• 1 3/4 cups fresh orange juice
• 3/4 cup dried apricot, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 5/8 kg chicken (no. 16)
• 2 teaspoons soft brown sugar

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 180°c
• 2 heat olive oil in a medium heavy-based frying pan over a low to medium heat and gently cook shallots for 3-4 minutes or until softened.
• 3 add the rice and stir until rice grains are coated well with the oil. add the orange rind, 1 1/4 cups of the orange juice, apricots and cardamom. bring to the boil.
• 4 reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes or until the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is tender. remove from heat, transfer mixture to a bowl and cool completely.
• 5 wipe chicken inside and out with paper towel. spoon the cooled rice mixture into the chicken cavity and seal opening with skewers or toothpicks. place chicken in a roasting pan.
• 6 combine remaining orange juice and brown sugar in a jug and pour over chicken.
• 7 roast for 1 1/2 hours, basting occasionally with pan juices. check the chicken has cooked through -the juices run clear when the chicken thigh is pierced with a skewer at the thickest part.
• 8 serve chicken with the rice stuffing.