Roast lemon and thyme chicken with crispy roast potatoes and honey-roasted carrots

Instructions

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 190°C fan/210°C conventional.

2. 2

   Pat the whole chicken thoroughly dry with kitchen paper. Season the cavity with 1 tsp sea salt and a little black pepper, then stuff with the halved lemon, 2 crushed garlic cloves and 3 thyme sprigs. Rub the skin with about 15 ml olive oil and scatter 1 tsp sea salt and a little black pepper over the skin. Tie the legs or tuck them under.

3. 3

   Place the chicken breast-side up on a roasting tin and put it in the oven. Roast for 48 minutes to begin building colour.

4. 4

   Meanwhile, peel and cut the Maris Piper potatoes into even pieces. Add to a saucepan of salted boiling water and parboil for 10 minutes until the edges are just tender.

5. 5

   Drain the potatoes well, then give them a good shake in the pan to roughen the edges. Toss the potatoes with 30 ml olive oil, a pinch of sea salt and a grind of black pepper. In a separate bowl, toss the carrots and parsnips with 15 ml olive oil, the honey and the wholegrain mustard and a pinch of sea salt.

6. 6

   After the initial 48 minutes on the chicken, quickly open the oven and add the prepared potatoes and the honeyed carrots and parsnips on separate roasting trays. Tuck the remaining 3 thyme sprigs among the veg and return everything to the oven. Continue roasting for a further 60 minutes.

7. 7

   When the roasting time is complete, check the chicken's internal temperature at the thickest part of the thigh without touching bone — it should read 75°C. If it needs a few minutes more, return to the oven for 5–10 minutes; otherwise remove the chicken and transfer to a board to rest for 15 minutes.

8. 8

   While the chicken rests, make the gravy. Pour any roasting juices from the tin into a small saucepan, place the tin on the hob over medium heat and add 1 tbsp (15 ml) olive oil and the finely chopped brown onion. Sauté for about 5 minutes until soft and golden. Stir in the plain flour and cook for 1 minute, then whisk in the hot chicken stock, scraping any stuck bits from the tin. Simmer for 5 minutes until slightly thickened and season to taste.

9. 9

   Carve the rested chicken, transfer the roast potatoes and honey-roasted carrots and parsnips to a serving platter, drizzle the gravy and scatter over the roughly chopped fresh parsley. Serve immediately.

Tips

• Buy a chicken close to the stated weight (about 2.2 kg) — the roast time here is calculated for that size. If your bird is lighter/heavier, adjust using 20 minutes per 500 g plus 20 minutes as a rough guide.
• Dry the skin thoroughly with kitchen paper before rubbing with oil — that step makes the crisp skin happen.
• Roughing the parboiled potatoes in the pan (shake the colander) gives more surface area to crisp up in the oven.
• If you don’t have a meat thermometer, check the juices run clear from between thigh and body and the leg should move freely; still, a thermometer is the easiest, most reliable method.
• Make the gravy in the roasting tin on the hob to pick up every caramelised flavour; if you need a gluten-free gravy, use cornflour dissolved in a little cold water instead of plain flour.

Substitutions

• whole chicken → two smaller chickens (about 1.1 kg each) roasted side by side; reduce initial roast time and check internal temperature

  Stays close

• Maris Piper potatoes → King Edward or Maris Peer potatoes, same method

  Stays close

• honey → maple syrup, same quantity

  Noticeably different

• plain flour → cornflour, use 1 tbsp cornflour mixed with 2 tbsp cold water (add at the end to thicken)

  Stays close

Nutrition

Per serving · estimated

640

Calories

50 g

Protein

60 g

Carbs

22 g

Fat

6 g

Fibre

10 g

Sugar

700 mg

Sodium

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