Galeto al Primo Canto

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Rimmed sheet pan with wire rack
• •Kitchen shears for splitting the birds
• •Small saucepan for boiling the marinade
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Heavy 3-liter pot for polenta
• •Churrasqueira rotisserie, optional

Instructions

1. 1

   Split the chicken

   If the birds are not already split, cut out the backbones with kitchen shears, press each bird flat, then cut through the breastbone so you have four halves. Pat them dry and set them in a shallow dish. Smaller birds are the point here: they cook through before the skin gets tired and the meat stays tender.

   Can't find galeto? Buy Cornish hens or the smallest chickens you can get. A big bird still feeds you, but it stops being that quick, tender Serra style.
2. 2

   Make the marinade

   Stir together the wine, 1/4 cup oil, vinegar or lemon juice, garlic, onion, parsley, sage or marjoram, bay leaves, salt, and pepper. It should smell sharp, green, and garlicky. Wine and vinegar wake the meat, but they are not magic. The salt needs time to move inward, so give it time.

3. 3

   Marinate overnight

   Pour the marinade over the chicken and rub it all over, including the little pockets between skin and meat where your fingers can reach without tearing. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours and up to 24, turning once if you remember. Overnight seasoning is what makes the meat taste seasoned all the way through, not just salty on the surface.

4. 4

   Dry the chicken

   Take the chicken out of the fridge 30 minutes before roasting, no longer. Heat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Lift the chicken from the marinade, scrape off big bits of onion and garlic so they don't burn, and pat the skin mostly dry. Pour the marinade into a small saucepan and boil it hard for 5 minutes if you want to use it for basting. Raw chicken marinade doesn't get brushed on cooked food. Anota aí.

5. 5

   Set the rack

   Brush a wire rack with 1 tablespoon oil and set it over a rimmed sheet pan. Arrange the chicken halves skin side up with space between them, then add 1/2 cup water to the pan underneath, not touching the chicken. The rack lets hot air move around the skin so it browns instead of sitting in wet juices, and the water keeps the drips from scorching before the bird is done.

   If you have a churrasqueira rotisserie, skewer the halves firmly and cook over medium coals, turning, 50 to 70 minutes. Keep the same checkpoints: gold skin, browned edges, and 74°C (165°F) at the thigh.
6. 6

   Roast gently

   Roast for 35 minutes at 180°C (350°F). The skin will tighten and turn pale gold, and the meat will warm through without rushing. This first gentle stretch matters because the breast dries faster than the thigh cooks, and a gente wants dinner, not dry little punishment.

7. 7

   Finish hot

   Brush the chicken with the boiled marinade and the melted butter or olive oil. Raise the oven to 220°C (425°F) and roast 15 to 25 minutes more, until the skin is deep golden, the edges are browned, and an instant-read thermometer in the thickest part of the thigh reads 74°C (165°F). No thermometer? Pierce the thigh near the bone and look for clear juices, not pink. A thermometer is not a personality test. Use it if you have it.

8. 8

   Cook the polenta

   While the chicken roasts, stir the cornmeal with 1 cup cold water in a bowl until smooth. Bring the remaining 3 cups water and 1 teaspoon salt to a boil in a heavy pot, then whisk in the cornmeal mixture. Lower the heat and cook, stirring often, 25 to 30 minutes, until thick, glossy, and no longer smelling raw. Starting with cold water prevents lumps; cooking it properly makes polenta creamy instead of gritty. Stir in the butter or olive oil at the end.

9. 9

   Dress the greens

   Toss the sliced greens with 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar, and a pinch of salt, or murchar couve quickly in a hot pan until bright green and just tender. That bitter, fresh edge cuts through the roasted chicken and the soft polenta. The plate needs something green. It always does.

10. 10

    Rest and serve

    Rest the chicken for 10 minutes before serving. Spoon any glossy pan juices over the top, scatter the extra parsley, and serve with polenta, greens, and lemon wedges if you like. Resting keeps the juices in the meat instead of all over the board. Add arroz soltinho and feijão tomorrow and the leftovers become a proper pê-efe: grain, beans, chicken, green, dinner solved.

Chef Tips

• •Young bird matters. Look for galeto, poussin, or Cornish hens around 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds each. If all you can find is a larger chicken, cut it into pieces and roast by the same checkpoints, but expect a longer cook and a less delicate result.
• •Use a dry white wine, not a sweet one. If you don't cook with wine, use 3/4 cup water plus 1/4 cup extra vinegar or lemon juice. It won't have the same Serra flavor, but it will still be honest food.
• •Skip the seasoning packet. This is where a packet likes to sell you confidence. Don't buy it. Garlic, onion, herbs, salt, wine, and time are doing the job, and they do it better.
• •Tuesday shortcut: marinate for 2 hours in the fridge and roast the bird in smaller pieces. The flavor won't be as deep as overnight, but you'll still resolver o jantar without handing dinner to a powder.
• •Leftover polenta should go into a small oiled dish and chill. Tomorrow, cut it into slabs and brown it in a pan until crisp at the edges. Leftovers are not a problem; they're the next meal beginning.

Advance Preparation

• •Marinate the chicken 8 to 24 hours in the fridge. More than 24 hours and the acid starts changing the surface of the meat in a way I don't like.
• •Split the birds and make the marinade the night before. The next day is mostly roasting, stirring polenta, and pretending you didn't think this was too hard.
• •Cooked chicken keeps 3 days in the fridge. Shred leftovers into rice and beans, or tuck them beside polenta and greens for another plate.
• •Polenta is best fresh and soft, but leftovers chill well for frying the next day.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 460g)