GJ Tavern’s Brick Chicken with Roasted Vegetable Salad

With a paper towel, remove as much moisture as possible from the chicken skin. Place the chicken, with skin side down, onto a small cookie sheet. Rub the chicken with lemon zest, orange zest, and a teaspoon of black pepper. Cover the chicken and cookie sheet with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight.

Heat oven to 475 degrees. In a bowl, toss cabbage with a drizzle of canola oil, black pepper, and salt to taste. Place cabbage onto a baking sheet and place in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until cooked with a little char. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Transfer cabbage to a container and set aside for later.

Toss asparagus with canola oil, black pepper, and salt to taste. Arrange on a baking dish and place in a 475-degree oven for 10 minutes. Remove and allow to cool. Both cabbage and asparagus can be made in advance.

In a cast iron skillet over a high-heat stove, add 2 tablespoons of canola oil. When the oil is hot, take the chicken out of the refrigerator and again dry off the skin with a paper towel. Season the entire chicken evenly with salt. Ensure that both sides of the chicken are seasoned equally. Reduce oven to 350 degrees.

Meanwhile, place chicken, skin side down, into the hot cast iron pan and immediately reduce heat to medium. Place the brick on top of the chicken. Cook for about 15 minutes or until the skin is golden-brown and crispy. Flip over the chicken. Use tongs and a large spoon if needed to turn the chicken over. Be careful not to burn yourself.

With skin side up, place the chicken in the oven for 15 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches about 160 degrees. The residual heat will finish cooking the chicken.

While the chicken is baking in the oven, make the roasted vegetable salad. Cut the cabbage into thin strips, then transfer to the large mixing bowl with the asparagus. Add chives, tarragon, basil, olive oil, and lemon juice. Season with 1 teaspoon of black pepper and salt to taste. Gently toss the vegetable mixture and set aside.

Remove the chicken from the oven and allow it to cool for at least five minutes. Meanwhile, you can prepare the sauce.

In a small sauce pot, add reduced chicken stock and bring it to a boil. Reduce to medium heat and stir in the butter and cook for four minutes. Turn off the heat and add lemon juice and more salt if necessary to taste. Pour the sauce onto a large entrée plate and place the chicken on top, followed by the vegetable salad. Makes 2 servings.