Ingredients:

• 2t Five Spice powder
• Black pepper
• 2T vegetable oil
• 1 medium to large whole, free-range chicken
• 2 cups Hoisin sauce
• 1 cup red wine (Cabernet Sauvignon)
• 3 thumb-sized pieces of fresh ginger
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2T treacle sugar
• 4 red chillies, seeds removed and chopped
• 2T fresh lemon juice
• A knob of butter

Directions: Combine the Five Spice powder, six grinds of black pepper and the vegetable oil, and rub the mixture over the chicken and inside the cavity. Place in a ceramic dish, cover with clingfilm and refrigerate overnight or for eight hours. On the same day, combine the Hoisin sauce, red wine, ginger, garlic, treacle sugar, chillies and lemon juice in a saucepan and simmer for 20 minutes. Decant the sauce into a sealable storage container and refrigerate overnight. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Remove the chicken from the marinade and rub the butter over the skin. Place on a baking tray and brush the sauce over and inside the bird. Roast for one and a half hours, basting with the sauce, inside and out, every 20 minutes. Carve the chicken and serve with butter-and-parsley mashed potatoes and julienned spring onions. Serves 4 This recipe originally featured in the July 2012 issue of House and Leisure.