Pinaupong Manok - Chicken On a Bed of Salt

Pinaupong Manok in Tagalog means the sitting chicken. This is a classic Filipino dish which is a flavorful, fragrant, tender and fabulous-looking whole chicken roasted on a deep bed of rock salt. It is an easy recipe to cook, with basic pantry ingredients. In the time of my grandmother, this was cooked in a clay pot using free-range, organic chickens. I have adjusted the recipe for today's kitchen using a heavy-duty roasting pan and chicken from our nearby market. This is a recipe by The Quirino Kitchen.

*Reprinted and published with permission from the new memoir Every Ounce of Courage: A Daughter's Reflections on Her Mother's Bravery by Elizabeth Ann Besa-Quirino.

Cook Time2 40

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Asian, Filipino

Keyword: Pinaupong Manok - Sitting Chicken On A Bed of Salt

Servings: people

Calories: 15kcal

Author: Elizabeth Q

Equipment

Large roasting pan to fit chicken - about 9 x 13 inches
Medium-sized mixing bowl
chopping board
heavy-duty aluminum foil
knife set for carving

Ingredients

1 whole (4 to 5 pounds) chicken for roasting
1 Tablespoon garlic powder
1 Tablespoon onion powder
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
5 cups rock salt or kosher salt
1 whole (5 to 10 ounces) medium-sized onion, chopped
4 stalks scallions, white and green parts separated

For serving:

1/4 cup toyo (soy sauce)
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
steamed rice

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 F.
Wash the chicken thoroughly outside and inside the cavity. Pat dry with paper towels.
Tip: Remove the frozen pack of giblets and innards inside the cavity.
In a medium-sized bowl, make the seasoning blend: combine the garlic powder, onion powder, pepper, and 1 teaspoon salt. Rub the seasoning blend all over the chicken, outside and inside.
Stuff the chicken with the onions and scallion whites.

To prepare for roasting:

Pour about 5 cups of salt into a 9 x 13-inch roasting pan or other heavy-duty pan large enough to fit the whole chicken.
Level off the salt to make a flat, even bed about 1/2 inch thick.
Place the chicken, breast side up, on top of the bed of salt.
Cover the pan tightly with foil.
Roast the chicken for 2 hours and 40 minutes (for this size of bird).
When the chicken is cooked, remove from the oven. Transfer to a chopping board, rest the bird for 10 minutes, and then carve into serving pieces.
Discard the salt bed.

To serve the chicken:

Combine the soy sauce and lemon juice to make a dipping sauce.
Chop the scallion greens and use to garnish the carved chicken.
Serve warm with steamed rice and the dipping sauce.

Cook's comments:

To check if the chicken is cooked, pierce the thickest part of the thigh. The meat should not be red or pink and the juices should run clear if pierced. If using a thermometer to check if the chicken is cooked, the internal temperature should read at least 167 F. If the meat is still pink or has not reached 167 F, return the chicken to the oven and cover loosely with foil. Continue roasting, checking at 5-minute intervals, until the chicken is cooked.

New book alert!

This is a recipe printed and republished with permission from my new memoir - Every Ounce of Courage: A Daughter's Reflections On Her Mother's Bravery by Elizabeth Ann Besa-Quirino.
It is a story about a Filipina heroine, my late mother, Lulu Reyes Besa, a humanitarian aid worker, civilian recipient of the US Medal of Freedom in 1947 from President Harry Truman, for bringing relief and aid to American and Filipino POWs.
My book has woven memoir, history, and culinary narrative into an engrossing account of my mother's remarkable life.
The book is in paperback and eBook format - sold worldwide on Amazon.
It is also available on the website of Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores.

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