Sri Lankan Roast Chicken with Curry Leaf Butter

About This Recipe

This roast chicken takes the dark-roasted curry powder central to Sri Lankan cooking and uses it as a dry rub under and over the skin of a whole bird, giving the roast a deeply savory, almost smoky crust that's distinct from a plain herb-roasted chicken. Massaging the spice mix directly under the skin, not just on the surface, ensures the flavor reaches the meat itself rather than sitting only on top. Halfway through roasting, the chicken is basted with a butter infused with curry leaves, garlic and a little chile, sizzled briefly in a small pan until the curry leaves turn crisp and fragrant. This basting step borrows the South Asian tempering technique — blooming aromatics in hot fat — and applies it to a Western-style roast, giving the finished chicken a glossy, deeply aromatic skin. Resting the chicken properly after roasting, tented loosely with foil, lets the juices redistribute so the meat stays moist despite the assertive spicing. The result is a chicken that eats like a familiar Sunday roast but tastes unmistakably like it belongs on a Sri Lankan table, especially served with coconut sambal or rice.

Ingredients

Serves 5

• 1 wholechicken(about 1.8kg)
• 2 tbspcoriander seeds(toasted and ground)
• 1 tbspcumin seeds(toasted and ground)
• 1 tspblack peppercorns(cracked)
• 1 tspchile powder
• 0.5 tspturmeric
• 2 tbspvegetable oil
• 1.5 tspfine sea salt
• 4 tbspbutter
• 2 sprigscurry leaves
• 4 clovesgarlic(sliced)
• 1lime(cut into wedges)

Instructions

1. 1

   Mix the spice rub

   Combine ground coriander, cumin, black pepper, chile powder, turmeric, oil and salt into a thick paste.

2. 2

   Rub under the skin

   Loosen the chicken's skin gently with your fingers and rub the spice paste directly onto the meat under the skin, then coat the outside as well.

3. 3

   Roast

   Roast on a rack at 200°C (400°F) for 60 minutes, until the juices run clear and a thermometer in the thickest part reads 74°C (165°F).

   Tent loosely with foil if the skin browns too fast in the first 30 minutes.

4. 4

   Make the curry leaf butter

   During the last 15 minutes of roasting, melt butter in a small pan and add curry leaves and garlic, sizzling until the leaves turn crisp and fragrant, about 2 minutes.

5. 5

   Baste and finish

   Brush the curry leaf butter generously over the chicken and return to the oven for the final 10 minutes to set the glaze.

6. 6

   Rest and serve

   Rest the chicken 10 minutes under loose foil before carving. Serve with lime wedges and any remaining curry leaf butter spooned over.

Variations

• •

  Spatchcock the chicken for faster, more even roasting, reducing the time to about 45 minutes.

• •

  Add a splash of coconut milk to the roasting pan drippings to make a quick pan sauce.

• •

  Use chicken thighs instead of a whole bird for a quicker weeknight version of the same flavors.

Storage

Refrigerate leftover chicken up to 3 days; reheat gently in a covered dish in a 160°C (325°F) oven to keep the meat from drying out.

Frequently Asked Questions