This is a honey roasted chicken recipe from my cookbook “The Curry Guy Bible” but in the book I use quails. In this recipe, you use poussin, which is a young chicken that has a more delicate flavour and is more tender than older birds but you could substitute a larger chicken or two if you like.
About this recipe.
This is really just a play on the quail recipe from 'The Curry Guy Bible". If you are cooking your honey roasted chicken or poussin on a barbecue, the instructions are exactly the same as those in the book.
This time I decided to have a bit of fun and I lit up my Doori Tandoor oven. The flavour was just as amazing as I thought it would be. If you have a tandoor oven you've got to try this recipe in your tandoor as I explain in the recipe card below.
Not only do the poussing cook faster in a tandoor which makes them much more juicy but they also get a nice char in minutes.
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Ingredients
There are quite a few ingredients for this recipe. The white bowl at the top is fried onion paste which is usually darker because of all the yoghurt I added. You do not need to use as much yoghurt as I did. I was using the onion paste in other recipes with quite a lot of yoghurt so I left most of the additional yoghurt in the recipe out to retain the same flavour.
- poussin
- Flaky sea salt
- FOR THE FIRST MARINADE
- lemons
- garlic and ginger paste
- Kashmiri chilli powder
- rapeseed (canola) oil
- FOR THE SECOND MARINADE
- fried onion paste (See notes below)
- cardamom
- 2 tbsp garlic and ginger paste
- green bird’s eye chillies
- ground cumin
- ground coriander
- garam masala
- black pepper
- salt
- Greek yoghurt
- FOR BASTING
- clear honey
- ghee
See recipe card for quantities.
Step by step photos
You will see from the photos below that this honey roasted chicken recipe is really straight forward. Just marinate it and let it cook until ready. Then you can char it at the end for more flavour.
- Step 1: Carefully run your fingers under the skin to separate the skin from the meat.
- Step 2: Whisk the ingredients for the first marinade together in a mixing bowl.
- Step 3: Rub this marinade under the skin, into the carcass and over the skin too and let stand for 10 to 15 minutes while you make the second marinade.
- Step 4: Add the ingredients for the second marinade to a mixing bowl.
- Step 5: Whisk them all together until smooth. The marinade should look something like this.
- Step 6: Again, rub this marinade under the skin, in the carcass and over the skin.
- Step 7: If cooking in a tandoori oven, skewer the chicken from the neck end, down the back bone and out the tail. I recommend skewering a potato under the chicken to stop it from sliding off into the fire.
- Step 6: Roast the chicken for about 30 minutes or until 90% cooked through.
- Step 9: See the recipe card below for BBQ instructions. In the tandoori I cover the top for most of the cook.
- Step 10: If you haven’t melted the ghee and butter together, you can do that by putting it all in a metal container and letting it melt together on top of the tandoor.
- Step 11: When the poussin (chicken) is nicely browned and almost cooked through, baste it generously with the ghee and honey mixture.
- Step 12: Take out of the tandoor and allow it to sit for about 10 minutes. In the meantime, add more charcoal to your tandoor to get it as hot as you can.
- Step 13: Return the poussin to the tandoor to char to your liking. About 10 minutes should do the job but how much you char it is up to you.
- Step 14: Allow to rest for at least 10 minutes before serving or carving.
What is poussin?
Poussin refers to a young chicken, typically less than 28 days old and weighing around 400–500 grams (under 1.1 lbs). It's tender and often used in fine dining or gourmet dishes because it cooks quickly and has delicate flavour and texture.
Think of it like a miniature roast chicken—perfect for individual servings.
Substitutions
There are a few ingredients in this honey roasted chicken recipe you might not have on hand or want to make. The following substitutes will work fine:
- Poussin - The marinades goes well with any chicken-like bird. You can substitute normal chicken, pheasant, quail... whatever you like.
- Onion Paste - Although homemade onion paste is best, you could purchase fried onions. Use about 4 to 5 tablespoons shop bought fried onions and blend them with about 2 to 3 tablespoons of yoghurt.
- Vegetarian - This marinade works equally well with paneer. Slathering the marinated paneer with the ghee and honey mixture at the end of cooking is also very nice.
Equipment
Tandoor oven: I have a few tandoor ovens because I love cooking in them. The Doori tandoor I use in this recipe is a great place to start. It heats up quickly and retains the heat. It's also portable unlike clay tandoors.
Skewers: If cooking in a tandoor, you will need skewers. The Doori tandoor comes with skewers.
A barbecue: If you are not cooking in a tandoor, you can use a good barbecue that has a lid so that you can cook over an indirect heat. The poussin can also be roasted in a conventional oven at the same temperature as the barbecue instructions below.
Mixing Bowls: For preparing the marinade and marinating the honey roasted chicken.
Storage
You can store any leftovers for up to 4 days. If you have enough, you could reheat them in an oven pre-heated to 200°C/400F but watch them carefully and only let them roast in the oven until heated through.
You could also use the bones and any bits of meat to make a good chicken stock.
Top Tip
Be sure to let the poussin rest for at least 10 minutes after cooking. They will be much juicier if you do.
FAQ
Typically, a poussin roasts in 35–45 minutes at 200°C / 400°F. Always check for doneness with a meat thermometer—internal temp should reach 74°C / 165°F in the thickest part of the thigh. It will cook faster in a tandoor than in an oven or barbecue.
You can get away with marinating it for about 30 minutes. Marinating it for 24 to 48 hours is much better and will offer flavour benefits!
Trussing (tying the legs together) isn’t strictly necessary, but it helps the bird cook evenly and looks neater when serving. Optional, but a nice touch. I don't usually bother with doing it.
Related
Want to try some of the other recipes I made in my Doori Tandoor oven? Try some of these!
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with [this recipe]:
Honey Roasted Chicken Recipe
This is a delicious way to marinate and cook chicken. In the recipe I use poussin which is amazing because it's naturally tender with a delicate flavour.
Ingredients
- 4 poussin, skin on
- Flaky sea salt to taste
- FOR THE FIRST MARINADE
- Juice of 2 lemons
- 2 tsp garlic and ginger paste
- 1 tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 70ml (1⁄4 cup) rapeseed (canola) oil
- FOR THE SECOND MARINADE
- 1 quantity of fried onion paste (See notes below)
- Seeds of 8 green cardamom pods, smashed
- 2 tbsp garlic and ginger paste
- 3 green bird’s eye chillies, minced to a paste
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 250g (1 cup) Greek yoghurt
- FOR BASTING
- 125ml (1⁄2 cup) clear honey
- 4 tbsp melted ghee
Instructions
- Carefully move a finger between the skin and meat of the poussins to separate (but not remove) the skin from the meat. Using a small knife, try to make slits in the meat under the skin in a few places.
- Mix all the first marinade ingredients together in a bowl and divide equally under the skin of the birds. If there is any remaining, you can rub it onto the skin of the quails. Marinate for about 20 minutes while you make the second marinade.
- Whisk all the second marinade ingredients together in a bowl and rub under the skin too, and also inside the carcasses. Again, if there is any left over, rub it over the skin.
- FOR THE BBQ
- Set up the barbecue for indirect heat cooking. (See notes below for an explanation of indirect cooking if you are not familiar with this term.) When very hot (around 220°C/430°F), place the poussins on the grill away from the burning coals and cook for 10 minutes. Swiftly transfer to a plate and cover the barbecue.
- Melt the honey and ghee and whisk together. Brush the poussins with this mixture and return to the barbecue to cook for about 20 minutes, or until the quails are cooked through and the skin is nicely browned and crispy.
- Season with flaky salt to serve.
- FOR THE TANDOOR OVEN
- Skewer the poussin from the neck end, down the backbone and through the tail. Try to weave the skewer a little as you do this so that the poussin don't slide. I recommend cooking the poussin quite high up on the skewer and skewering a potato at the end to help keep them in place as they cook.
- Heat your tandoor oven to about 250°C/485°F. When it is up to heat, place your poussin skewers inside and partially cover the top to cook. If you like, you could mix your ghee and honey in a metal container and place it on top to melt for easier basting.
- Roast the poussin for about 25 to 30 minutes or until almost cooked through. Then baste each poussin with the ghee and honey mixture generously.
- As you baste, remove the par-cooked poussin from the tandoor to rest for about 10 minutes. In the meantime, get that tandoor up to its highest temperature by adding a few more coals. You want it fiery hot!
- Return the poussin skewers to the tandoor to char to your liking. This will take another 10 minutes or so but how much you char the chicken is up to you.
- The poussin is cooked when it reaches and internal temperature of 74°C/165°F. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest for another 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
- You can either carve the poussin or, as they are usually quite small, give each person their own. Serve with flaky salt and lemon or lime wedges that can be squeezed over the top to taste at the table.
Notes
What is Indirect Cooking on a barbecue?
Indirect cooking is a process where you place all your charcoal on one side of your barbecue and leave the other side without any coals. Light the charcoal and cover the top to create an oven-like environment. When your barbecue is up to the correct heat, place your poussin on the side without any charcoal to roast just as they would in an oven.
How do you make the onion paste in the recipe?
Onion paste can be used a lot of different ways, not just in this recipe. You can stir some into a curry, for example for more flavour. In this recipe you can make the onion paste quite strong by adding only a couple tablespoons of the yoghurt to the fried onions which is my preferred flavour for this marinade. This time I was using the yoghurt paste in other recipes so I added more yoghurt.
INGREDIENTS
Rapeseed (canola) oil, for deep-frying
3 large onions, finely sliced
Yoghurt to taste
METHOD
Heat enough oil for deep-frying in a large, heavy- based pan over a high heat. Test to see if it is hot enough by dropping a piece of onion in the oil; if it sizzles immediately and floats to the top, the oil is ready.
Add the onions and fry for about 5 minutes until they turn light brown. They will continue to cook once
out of the oil, so be sure to get them out when they are still light brown.
Using a wire mesh spoon, transfer the fried onions to a plate lined with paper towel to soak up
the excess fat. Store in a cool, dry place in an air-tight container until ready to use. These will keep for up to a week.
To make the finished paste, blend the fried onions with about 3 tablespoons of yoghurt. You can add more yoghurt if you like but I prefer the more intense flavour of the fried onions so I usually 3 to 4 tablespoons. Although I used a version with a lot more yoghurt in it this time, I was able to make the recipe as I like it by not adding all the plain yoghurt in the recipe.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 558Total Fat: 43gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 29gCholesterol: 35mgSodium: 3535mgCarbohydrates: 40gFiber: 4gSugar: 24gProtein: 8g
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