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Francis Malma is the most famous
grill master in South America

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the sort of guy who once filmed an entire
series on grilling on a glacier in Patagonia

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So when I first heard about his salt-crusted
chicken cooked in an Orno Albarro wood-burning oven

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well, I bought my plane ticket for Uruguay the next
morning. The salt crust seals in the moistness and flavor

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The spectacular presentation speaks loud enough for
itself. Start with a four-pound chicken, preferably organic

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Cut a whole clove of garlic in half
and rub the outside of the chicken

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Then place the garlic in the
cavity. Cut a whole lemon in half

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and rub the outside of the chicken.
Place the lemon half inside the cavity

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Next, place a couple of fresh bay leaves in
the cavity And a couple of rosemary sprigs

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Next, fold the wingtips under the chicken
And take about two feet of butcher string

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And truss the chicken Bring it
under the tail of the chicken

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And over the ends of the drumsticks Loop
through once and pull the chicken tight

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Then pull the ends of the string
between the thighs Under the wings

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Around and under the chicken
And tie again on the other side

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Make one loop, then a second loop Pull
tight That is a surgeon's lock knot

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Then loop the end through and tie the chicken
tight And cut off the ends of the strings

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Season the outside of the chicken all
over with freshly ground black pepper

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And sprinkle the chicken with rosemary
as well. Why bother trussing the chicken

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It gives it a more compact and professional appearance Next the salt crust Start
with about six pounds of coarse salt kosher or sea and pour it into a bucket

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Then add about two cups of
water. and start mixing the salt

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You're looking for a mixture with the consistency of wet snow.
Francis Melman actually has three restaurants in South America

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including one in Garzan, Uruguay. He's also the author of
a spectacular book on live-fire cooking called Seven Fires

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Okay, now to put this all
together, take some of the salt

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and arrange it on a cast iron
plate to make a pedestal

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Place the chicken on top, and then completely
pack it in and surround it with the salt mixture

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This process of salt crusting and
baking is not limited to South America

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It's also a popular technique in Italy where it's
used to make salt-crusted branzino, sea bass

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Pat the salt crust with your hands to
make sure there are no cracks or fissures

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Let me wash my hands and I'll show you the oven. This
is a wood-burning oven. It's lined with firestone

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This is the home-size model of the professional ovens
used in pizzerias and restaurants with wood-burning ovens

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A few hours earlier, I built a hardwood fire,
and you use whole logs on a bed of embers

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It takes about two hours for the oven to come up to temperature. Push the embers back against the back
of the wall to make room for the chicken Temperature one Mississippi two Mississippi three Mississippi

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Ouch! It's about a 400 degree fire. So
take your chicken and place it in the oven

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Cooking time will be about an hour and a half. and what
you want to do is turn the chicken halfway through

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so it cooks evenly on both
sides. You can close the door

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I like to leave it partially open so you get good airflow. What's
going to happen, you have both the radiant heat from the firestone

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the direct heat from the coals, and the smoke that's
going to infuse and permeate through the salt crust

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Now, let me show you how to make the sauce. The sauce
is a simple variation on South American chimichurri

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It starts with salt, freshly ground black pepper, and garlic. Mash
these ingredients together into a paste with the back of a wooden spoon

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This releases the aromatic oils from the garlic.
Next, add finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

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a sort of breath freshener that
counteracts the pungency of the garlic

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and diced fresh tomato. Finally, whisk in the best
South American extra virgin olive oil you can find

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The idea is to make a simple condiment that
complements, not overpowers, the chicken

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And you just want to check the seasoning.
Mmm, bingo. That is fantastic olive oil

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So we'll open the oven door
and just rotate the chicken

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Remember, the pan will be excruciatingly hot, so wear thick protective gloves And you can use a meat
hook to help you turn the cast iron plate So we continue cooking the chicken another 40 minutes

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The chicken should be done. And
place it on a large baking sheet

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It's very hot, so you want to
let it sit for a few minutes

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Now, how do you know the chicken is cooked? Well, if you
make this often enough, you sort of get a feel for it

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But you can also use an instant-read meat
thermometer. Gently tap it through the crust

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You're looking for 180 degrees? We've got it.
Take a heavy implement like a cleaver and..

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And of course, you want to do
this in front of your company

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because it's just so utterly cool. The
fragrance of the lemon of rosemary, really nice

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So then you want to take a pastry brush
and start brushing off the excess salt

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The idea of salt crusting, an ancient technique
designed to seal in moisture and flavor

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Finally, don't forget to cut the
trussing straight. Let's see how we did

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Take a couple slices of the breast meat. and you
can spoon a little of the parsley tomato sauce

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Mmm! That chicken is so moist, and surprisingly,
it's not in the least bit over salty