Would you cook it this way? (Pollo Adobado)

mkc

So I have a spatchcocked chicken marinating in homemade adobo in the fridge this evening. The recipe is Rick Bayless' Pollo Adobado con Papas, from Mexico, One Plate at a Time.

Rick calls for the chicken to be put in a roasting pan, oiled potatoes scattered around with a little water, covered and roasted for some time, then uncovered and finished (left out some details, recipe is below).

I'm thinking of doing indirect at the same temp as the recipe, oiled potatoes and water in the drip pan on the grid above the platesetter (legs up on the 'setter) to keep the potatoes from burning, chicken on the raised grid above the drip pan.

Do y'all think that's a good plan?

Thanks,

Michelle


Here's the recipe:

Pollo Adobado con Papas (Red Chile-Roasted Chicken with Crusty Potatoes)

One of the first things author Rick Bayless learned to cook in Mexico was chicken marinated in red chiles. They call the marinade adobo, a Spanish word that signifies, plain and simply, "flavoring." A mixture of rehydrated dried red chiles, garlic, spices, and vinegar, it is an essential condiment in the Mexican kitchen. Once the seasoning mixture has done its work, resulting in a light, flavorful, and satisfying dish, the chicken is said to be adobado, or marinated (loosely translated). Store leftover marinade in the refrigerator for up to a week or in the freezer for a month. Then use on fish, pork, or lamb chops before grilling.


Adobo:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
6 dried ancho chiles, seeded and torn (about 3 ounces), or a mix of ancho, New Mexico, etc. dried chiles
2 cups hot water
1/3 cup cider vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
3 garlic cloves

Remaining ingredients:
1 (3 1/2-pound) whole chicken
1/3 cup water
10 small red potatoes, halved (about 1 1/4 pounds)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups (1/4-inch-thick) sliced onion
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
4 watercress sprigs (optional)

To prepare the adobo, heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chiles; sauté 2 minutes or until chiles are blistered. Combine chiles and 2 cups water in a small bowl. Cover and let stand 20 minutes or until tender. Combine chile mixture, 1/3 cup vinegar, and next 7 ingredients (1/3 cup vinegar through garlic) in a blender; process until smooth. Strain marinade through a medium-mesh sieve into a bowl; discard solids. (Adobo will have the consistency of steak sauce.)

To prepare remaining ingredients, remove and discard giblets, neck, and skin from chicken. Rinse chicken with cold water; pat dry. Trim excess fat. Place the chicken, breast side down, on a cutting surface. Cut in half lengthwise along the backbone. Combine 1 cup marinade and chicken in a large zip-top plastic bag; seal and marinate in refrigerator overnight.

Preheat oven to 375°.

Remove chicken from bag, reserving marinade. Place chicken on a broiler pan or rack of roasting pan. Insert meat thermometer into meaty part of thigh, making sure not to touch the bone. Pour 1/3 cup water into pan. Combine potatoes, 1 tablespoon oil, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a small bowl. Arrange potatoes around chicken. Bake at 375° for 1 hour or until thermometer registers 160°. Brush the reserved marinade over chicken and potatoes, and bake an additional 10 minutes. Place chicken and potatoes on a platter. Combine onion and 1 tablespoon vinegar in a bowl; arrange around chicken and potatoes. Garnish with watercress sprigs, if desired.

Yield: 4 servings

Mr. & Mrs Potatohead

That is how I would attack it for the first go-round.
BTW, it sounds like a good one! Give us the report.

mkc

Well, I cooked it as described after a 24 hour marinade.

The color was gorgeous, the potatoes were tasty, the chicken tasted like I'd forgotten to season it.

Very puzzling since the adobo is quite flavorful, tangy with a little heat from the peppers. I had even loosened the skin over the breasts and thighs rubbed some marinade directly on the skin at the start of the 24 hour marinade. Even tasting the crisp skin that was well-coated with the marinade, it tasted unseasoned.

We're still trying to figure out where the flavor went. This is the first Bayless recipe I've made that we didn't love.

But as always, the Egg produced a very moist chicken. And the bottle of Gemstone is mending my bruised culinary ego

Michelle
Egging in Denton, TX