It’s that time of year again. Okay, not quite — but, I’m really in the mood for comfort food, anyway.
Let’s be real, there’s never a “wrong” time for a cozy, warmly spiced, super flavorful, one-pot-meal. And this is one of my fall favorites.
Do you know what makes a comfort food a comfort food? The answer, along with links to the all of the images below is here. 
So let’s cook, shall we?
Enjoy!
Cardamom Buttermilk Roasted Chicken and Potatoes with Apple Spiced Brown Rice
Prep Time
6 hrs 45 mins
Total Time
6 hrs 45 mins
Note that 6 hours of the prep time is marinating time. And please, don't be intimidated by the length of this recipe -- yes, there are many ingredients and steps, but, it's easy.
Ingredients
For the chicken and potatoes :
- 2-1/2 cups buttermilk
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons ground cardamom
- 2-1/2 teaspoons minced garlic 2 to 3 cloves
- 1 tablespoon honey
- approximately 4-1/2- pounds cut-up whole chicken bone in, skin off
- 1 pound Idaho Baby Dutch Yellow potatoes cut into bite-sized pieces
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the rice:
- Olive oil for the pot
- 1 cup finely chopped onion
- 1-1/4 cup finely chopped apple peeled (about 1 apple -- I like Granny Smith or Fuji)
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic about 2 small cloves
- 1 cup dry brown rice rinsed
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 2 cups chicken stock
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves
Instructions
For the chicken and potatoes:
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Add the buttermilk, oil, cinnamon, cardamom, garlic and honey to a 9 X 13 X 2-inch baking dish, and use a whisk to blend the ingredients together.
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Add the chicken and potatoes and move the pieces around to be sure they are all well coated.
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Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 6 hours and ideally overnight. (At some point about mid-way through, flip the chicken pieces over.)
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Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, and adjust a rack to the center.
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Remove the marinating chicken from the refrigerator. Remove the pieces of chicken and place them on a large plate, and then use a spoon to collect the potatoes -- add them to the plate as well. Do not wipe any remaining marinade off of the chicken pieces! Discard the liquid from the dish and do not wash it. Return the chicken and potatoes to the dish, and season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper.
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Place the dish in the preheated 400 degree F oven and roast until the chicken is just cooked through and is golden brown on top, about 35 minutes. (You can cut a slit in the thickest part of one of the pieces -- if the juices run clear and it's no longer pink, it's done.)
-
Remove the chicken from the dish and sprinkle it again with salt and pepper, and set it aside.
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Once the chicken is cool enough to touch, remove it from the bones and shred it into large pieces.
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Season the potatoes with a bit more salt and pepper and return them to the oven until they are tender and golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Once you remove them from the oven, leave them in the dish and set them aside.
For the rice:
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While the chicken is roasting, coat the bottom of a medium-sized sauce pot with olive oil, add the onion and place it over medium heat.
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Cook until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.
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Add the apple, cinnamon, and garlic. Mix and then until the apple is tender, about 4 minutes.
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Add the rice and mix to be sure all of it is coated with oil -- if it's not, add a bit more oil. At this point the bottom of the pot will be getting dark -- that's okay (it's delicious flavor).
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Add the salt, honey and stock and use a wooden spatula to scrape the bottom of the pot a bit. Bring it to a boil. Then cover the pot, turn the heat to the lowest setting, and cook until the rice has absorbed all of the stock, about 40 minutes.
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Season the rice if necessary with salt and pepper to taste. (Here's How To Season To Taste.)
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Add the rice, chicken, and basil leaves to the potatoes and stir to combine.
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Serve!
definitely making this!!
What a tempting dinner recipe! A perfect dinner dish that includes the new season of apples!
Sounds delicious. A perfect meal.
Crazy mix of flavours. I LOVE IT.
This is dinner tonight!
This sounds unbelievable – comforting and autumn-like. I have to try it as soon as it cools off just a bit! ~ David
Yes David, better on a cool morning.:-)
This was so delicious! I made a couple of small changes, but overall used your method and it came out heavenly. If you want to read about how I used the recipe (and I did link back to this page), feel free to visit my blog at: http://www.foodinbooks.com
So awesome, Vanessa. Thank you!! 🙂