Servings

6

Ready In:

1 hour 20 min

Good For:

Main Dish 

Ingredients

2 x 1kg small roaster chickens

  • 50g melted herbed butter (40g butter, 1/2 lemon, 1/2 chopped shallot, pinch pepper, splash tabasco, 1tsp chopped capers- mix at room temperature)
  • 1 lemon and 1 onion- cut in half
  • 8 med potatoes-peeled, washed, cut into 3cm pieces, wash and drain

  • 3 carrots- peeled, washed, cut into 4-5 pieces

  • 1/2 red cabbage- cut into 3-3 wedges and sliced quite finely, wash if required +

  • 1 lemon- zest only +

  • 3 dessert spoons white sugar, or brown if you prefer +

  • 30ml red wine vinegar +

  • 20g butter +

  • 1/4 pumpkin- peeled and cut into 4-5cm pieces

  • 1 onion- thickly sliced

  • 1 tsp paprika

  • 4 dessert spoons vegetable oil

  • 750ml demi-glace- it’s like a meat base for multiple meat sauces. You can just use Bisto or another meat gravy base

  • 1 tsp mustard-Dijon

  • 2 cloves garlic

  • 1 1/2 heads broccoli- cut into small florets

  • salt and pepper

Step by Step Instructions

Step 1

Heat oven to 200°C

Remove chicken from packaging and wash if excess liquids are in the bag, dry well with paper.

Line a roasting tray with greaseproof paper.

Step 2

Season the inside and outside of the chickens. Place half an onion and lemon inside each cavity.

Place onto a roasting tray. Brush half the melted herbed butter all over the chickens with a pastry brush. The extra butter is for the vegetables so don’t use all, only half.

Step 3

Place the potatoes & carrots into a bowl. Pour the rest of the herb butter over the vegetables. Season with S & P and toss through. Scatter them all around the chickens. 

Place into the preheated oven on the top shelf and cook for between 60-70 mins. Once the chicken has cooked for 30mins, turn the tray in the oven and start basting. Basting is where you pour the cooking juices over the chicken several times during the second half of cooking.

Step 4

After basting at least 2-3 times and once the chicken has cooked for 70mins check to see if they’re cooked. Several ways to do this. First is by touch when the meat springs back, next is when holding up the chicken with tongs, the juices run clear. Another method is using a probe thermometer with a minimum temperature of 75°C. Place a knife into the thickest part, the thigh, and if the knife is hot it’s cooked.

Leave the chicken to rest for at least 10-20mins before portioning.

Step 5

Now onto the cabbage. Place all ingredients with a + next to them into a large pot. If the pot is too small, the cabbage won’t caramelise but rather boil and stew and we don’t want that. 

Place a lid over and while cooking on medium heat and stirring every once in a while, cook for between 20-30mins. Don’t forget to taste the food as it’s cooking and season when required.

Step 6

The cabbage should be tender, soured and slightly sweet. Leave the cabbage to rest in its juices with the lid off for a few moments before serving. 

Step 7

Line a small roasting tray

Place onions and pumpkin into the tray, Season with S & P, and paprika. Pour oil over.

Place into the oven at 200°C on the lower shelf of the oven and roast along with the chicken for up 40mins. Once you can place a knife into the pumpkin with relative ease it’s cooked. 

Step 8

Place the cooking juices from the chicken tray (after cooking) into a pot along with mustard, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook down to the desired gravy consistency that your family prefers.

Season to taste. Pass through a sieve if you like but the garlic is perfectly edible once cooked. 

Step 9

Cook broccoli in boiling salted water for 2 mins. Drain and season with salt.

I always portion my roast chicken (when they are this size) into pieces and slice larger chickens.

When they are around a kilo like this one I prefer not to slice the meat as I find this dries it out. 

We fed four adults and two teenage girls with these portions.

Nice and easy roast and ready in 1 hour 20mins.

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