Makes 8-10 servings.
Capon is a large chicken with plump white meat, which is quite tender and not gamy. I prefer it to turkey. This dish is a convenient one pot meal with a delicious gravy, a perfect meal on Passover.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 organic capon, 10 pounds
- 2 lemons
- 6 full rosemary sprigs
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 pound fingerling potatoes, rinsed, halved lengthwise
- 8 shallots, peeled, halved
- 8 garlic cloves, peeled, halved
- 1 pound baby carrots
- 1 cup chicken broth
PREPARATION
- Preheat oven to 375F.
- Rinse the capon inside and out. Pat dry with paper towels. Discard excess fat.
- Into the cavity place 1 quartered lemon and 3 full rosemary sprigs.
- Place the capon into a large roasting pan breast side down. Rub with the juice of 1 lemon, than with 2 tablespoons olive oil and season lightly with salt and pepper.
- Place all the vegetables in a bowl and mix with 2 tablespoons of the remaining oil, 3 full rosemary sprigs and season with salt and pepper. Scatter the vegetables around the capon
- Roast for 1 hour, basting the capon with chicken broth and stirring the vegetables from time to time.
- Turn the capon over, stir the vegetables and roast for another 50-60 minutes.
- The capon is ready when the thigh juices run clear.
- Take the capon out of the oven and turn it breast side up. Cover the roasting pan with heavy foil and let rest for 20 minutes before carving.
- With slotted spoon, remove the vegetables to a dish to keep warm. Discard the rosemary sprigs.
- Pour the gravy into a saucepan and when cool place in the freezer for about ½ an hour to allow the fat to rise to the top. Discard the fat. Season the gravy and adjust consistency, if you like, by boiling it down.
- Serve the carved meat with the vegetables and the gravy.
