Hay-baked poultry

A recipe from cooking-ez.com

For 4 people, you will need:

• 1 100 g hay
• 2 1 whole bird (chicken, duck etc.)
• 3 salt
• 4 pepper
• Total weight: 1,900 grams

Times:

Preparation	Cooking	Start to finish
25 min.	4 hours	4 hours 25 min.

Step by step recipe

• 1: Flatten 100 g hay slightly into a mat.
• 2: Salt and pepper your choice of bird (a guinea fowl here) both inside and out.
  Put into a roasting bag.
• 3: Slip the hay underneath the bird.
  Seal the bag.
• 4: Put the wrapped bird in an oven-proof dish or on a baking sheet.
• 5: Cook in the oven at 280°F (140°C) for 4 hours.
  Turn the bag upside down halfway through.
• 6: After this time, take the dish out, but leave the oven on.
• 7: Pour all the cooking juices from the bag into a bowl.
• 8: Tip out the contents of the bag onto a baking sheet.
• 9: Remove and discard the hay.
• 10: Pull the meat off the bones. This should be very easy after such long cooking.
• 11: Discard the bones and skin and transfer the meat to an oven-proof dish as you go.
• 12: Pour the cooking juices over and put back in the oven to keep hot until serving.
• 13: Serve with your choice of vegetables, rice or pasta, as you prefer.

Remarks

If you don't have a roasting bag, use something like a cast-iron casserole with a lid which can go in the oven.
You might find hay in an organic shop these days, but the best way to get it is to ask a local farmer for a little.
The quantity of hay is just for guidance, you just need enough to form a bed under the bird.

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