A Stuart period dish - Chicken in hocchee

This recipe is adapted from 'A heritage of British cooking' by Maggie black, it is an excellent book which shows the development of our national cuisine. This recipe was popular in Stuart taverns and would tradionally be spit roasted. Note the use of grapes and spices, at one point it would have been an expensive dish, with taxes added in no less than 3 states for the ingredients. I find it quite refreshing with a salad of watercress or rocket on a hot day (it's over 20 degrees in North Wales today!).

Chykens in hoccee:

Take chykens and scald them, take parsel and sawge, without any other erbes, take garlec and grapes, and stoppe the chikens ful, and seeth them in good broth, so that they may esely be boyled thereinne. Messe them and caste thereto powdor-douce.

Modern interpretation:

1 x 3lb chicken (or other fowl)
3-4 oz of grapes
2 tablespoons of chopped sage and parsley
1 clove of garlic
3/4 pint of chicken stock
Powdor-douce (1/2 tsp each of caster sugar and ground cinnamon)
Salt and pepper

Truss the bird or have your butcher do it for you (I urge everyone to support a good local butcher) and stuff with the grapes, minced garlic and herbs. Sew up the chicken using butchers string and a larding needle (A knitting needle works well) and simmer the bird for 3/4 - 1 1/4 hours, before leaving to rest for at least 15 minutes, before lightly dusting with the powdor-douce. The broth makes a light soup base or may be boiled to reduce to make a sauce for a more substantial dish.

I recommend it warm with a salad, but it is equally good as a sunday roast, or with creamy mixed root mash and the reduced cooking liqour.