Roast chicken has got to be one of the finest comfort foods around, the house smells amazing, you are drawn to the oven to peek inside and the sizzle makes your mouth water. As well as enjoying roast chicken on the occasional Sunday I also like it mid-week with salad, pickles and a few warm Jerusalem Artichokes tossed in olive oil and garlic. Herby chicken is a perfect family dinner you could even cook some diced potatoes, sweet potatoes and parsnips in the tin around the chicken for a complete meal.
| Prep Time | 10-12 minutes |
| Cook Time | 50 minutes |
| Servings |
to 5 people
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Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken East Anglian preferred
- 30 g butter softened
- 1 tablespoon each of parsley, thyme and sage – chopped (or 1 teaspoon each of the dried stuff)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- seasoning
- 2 cloves garlic crushed (optional)
- 1 x lemon halved (optional)
- Any extra assortment of herbs or left over herb stalks
- 1 pint / 550ml water, stock, wine or beer or a mix
Ingredients
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Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven gas 6 / 210*c.
- Prepare your chicken, by removing any innards (unlikely these days) and I prefer my chickens untied but that’s up to you.
- Mix the butter with the herbs to make herb butter.
- Pull away the skin from the top of the chicken and push the butter underneath the skin, making sure the butter spreads out (between the skin and the flesh.)
- Place in a roasting tin on a wire rack.
- Pour in the water, stock, wine or beer.
- Rub over the garlic, olive oil and season well.
- If you are using the lemon just place it in the cavity with the extra herbs or herb stalks.
- Roast for 50 minutes or so until cooked. If you insert a knife in the thigh the juices should run out clear.
Recipe Notes
Tip – If you want to make gravy from the juices underneath, stir in 1 tablespoon of soya sauce, 1/2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce and 2 heaped teaspoons tomato puree. Add a handful of chopped herbs, season to taste and serve. Add some more stock or water if needed.
Sage and Thyme can be grown all year round in pots outside. One plant costs as much as a small bunch in the shops. Just pull off what you want and nature replenishes more.
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