Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic
Perfectly seasoned juicy chicken stuffed with all the flavors of France. Before you freak out, let me say, yes, it does have 40 cloves of garlic. But fear not, since the garlic is left unpeeled, it only perfumes the chicken slightly, not overpowering any of the other aromatics in the dish.
Roasting the garlic in with its skin on gently steams and caramelizes it into the most perfect garlic butter, great for slabbing onto a piece of crusty french bread. Which might I add is how the dish is served in France.
I have been meaning to share this recipe with you for a while. The only reason I haven't is because of my sweet tooth. I figure that everyone else is like me and would rather have chocolate cake for dinner instead of chicken.
Not that I have chocolate cake for dinner over chicken, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't want to.
I guess now is the perfect time to make and share "Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic" for two reasons. First of all, it's incredibly easy to make it. It quite literally comes together in under 2 minutes after which, all you have to do is kick back and relax and let your oven do all the hard work for you. Second, it's loaded with all the goodies that will give your immune system an extra boost. A much-needed plus in these crazy corona times. Wouldn't you agree?
Health benefits of chicken
First off, let's talk about the health benefits of chicken.
It's no secret that chicken broth can help you fight the flu or a cold. I once heard Nigella say that chicken soup is Jewish penicillin. I couldn't agree more.
Chicken is loaded with Selenium, an essential mineral for our bodies' well-being. Selenium plays a fundamental role in reproduction, thyroid gland function, immunity, the endocrine system, muscle function, and the cardiovascular system.
Chicken is an excellent source of lean protein that promotes muscle growth and development.
Protein makes up a large portion of every cell in our bodies. We use protein to repair tissue damage and build enzymes, hormones, and all kinds of body chemicals. Yet our bodies are not designed to store protein, unlike it does fats and carbs.
That's why having protein in your diet is so important, especially at night. During rest periods, your body repairs itself from all the damage it might have suffered during the day. Think of sleep as a protein reboot.
Phosphorus is also very abundant in chicken. Phosphorus not only ensures good bone health and delays osteoporosis but helps calm your central nervous system.
I'm guessing that we could all use a bit of natural calming right now.
Actually, all poultry has a soothing effect because it stimulates the production of serotonin, that feel-good amino acid.
In short, chicken helps improve your mood and regulates sleep.
It also is an excellent source of B-complex vitamins, Niacin, and vitamin A. B-complex vitamins boost your metabolism. They also get your blood pumping, which translates into healthy blood vessels.
Niacin is used by the body to replicate DNA in new cells. Niacin insufficiency has been linked to cancer and DNA damage. Finally, vitamin A is incredibly beneficial for eyesight.
I bet you understand now why you always felt so much better after your mom brought you some chicken soup in bed when you were feeling under the weather.
Health benefit of garlic
On the other hand, garlic has been used since ancient Sumerian times as an essential herb to treat all sorts of ailments. Now modern science has delved into why garlic plays a crucial role in a healthy diet.
There are a slew of sulfur-compounds in garlic that help your immune system fight germs and viruses. These compounds trigger a faster response from some white blood-cells when they encounter viruses.
Studies have shown that people who eat garlic regularly are less likely to catch a cold or flu. They also bounce back much quicker from being sick than people who don't eat garlic.
It also seems to have a positive effect on improving blood pressure for those who suffer from hypertension. In fact, there are claims that including high doses of garlic in our diet are as effective as some of the regular meditations prescribed to people with hypertension.
Garlic is also known for reducing LDL (bad) cholesterol.
Furthermore, the powerful antioxidants packed in garlic protect cells against premature aging. They also seem to have a positive effect on slowing the onset of Alzheimer's and dementia.
And I bet you didn't know that garlic gives you a bit of an energy boost. As a matter of fact, it was widely consumed by Olympian athletes in Ancient Greece as a performance-enhancing remedy. Doping in garlic form.
The health benefits of both garlic and chicken go on and on, but for our purposes, let's just agree on how healthy they both are.
As for this recipe, I can assure you that it will soon become a family favorite. Making chicken with 40 cloves of garlic is easy enough for a quick weeknight meal, but fancy enough to serve to guests.
Hopefully, we will see the end of this soon and will be able to enjoy the company of others.
The whole recipe comes together in a jiffy, in fact, check out how I make it in less than 2 minutes start on my Instagram stories. Of course, that doesn't include the time the chicken spent in the oven cooking because I'm not in the habit of dinning salmonella.
Anyways, I hope you make this, both your immune system and your taste buds will be very grateful.
Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic
Ingredients:
- 1 whole chicken
- 40 cloves garlic unpeeled
- 1 large carrot, peeled & chopped
- 2 large celery stalks and leaves roughly chopped
- 2 small onions, quartered
- olive oil
- 2 sprigs rosemary
- 4 sprigs thyme
- 2 spring onions
- 1 glass white wine
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
How to cook Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic
- Preheat oven to 400°F or 200°C.
- Season chicken generously inside and out.
- Stuff chicken with spring onions, 1 of the celery leaves (or parsley) 6 unpeeled cloves of garlic, 1 sprig rosemary and 2 sprigs thyme.
- Place chopped carrots, onions, and celery in the bottom of your baking dish. Set chicken on top of the vegetables breast side up sprinkle unpeeled garlic cloves around chicken. Pour in white wine
- Drizzle olive oil on chicken and vegetables, season again and bake for 55 min or until fully cooked, depends on the size of your chicken
Calories
174Fat (grams)
4.5Sat. Fat (grams)
1Carbs (grams)
2Fiber (grams)
2.7Net carbs
15.5Sugar (grams)
1.59Protein (grams)
9.1Sodium (milligrams)
49Cholesterol (grams)
22
