Jiggs Dinner with Roasted Chicken
1 whole chicken (2-3 pounds)
1 piece salt beef (1 pound, or so)
2 1/2 heads green cabbage, quartered
1 turnip, peeled
8 large carrots, peeled and chopped into large chunks
8 large potatoes, peeled and cut in quarters
Roasting the chicken:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove any giblets from inside the cavity, then place chicken breast side up in roasting pan.
2. Season skin with salt and pepper and rub with olive oil, if desired.
3. Roast chicken between 50-70 minutes depending on size. Chicken is ready when thermometer reads 165 degrees and juice runs clear when a knife is inserted into join between the body and the thigh.
4. Let chicken rest for 10 minutes before carving.
For the boiled meal:
1. The day before making the Jigg’s Dinner, separately soak the salt beef and the split peas in fresh water overnight to remove the excess salt. The next day, replace the water that the beef is soaking in , and soak for several more hours.
2. Put beef in a large pot filled with water, and bring to a boil. Drain the peas, put into a wet pudding bag and place in the water with the beef.
3. After an hour and twenty minutes, it’s time to begin adding the vegetables. First, add the cabbage. At the one and a half hour mark, you can add the carrots and turnips. Finally, after one hour and forty minutes, add the potatoes.
4. At the two hour mark, remove from heat, sort vegetables, mash peas and serve with dressing, gravy and a golden roasted chicken!