This is a perfect lazy Sunday roast dinner. Garlicky chicken, crisp roast potatoes, roasted vegetables in a tomato sauce with a basil salsa verde. It goes in the oven and apart from having to go back to put a few things in the oven it just takes care of itself.
Everyone loves roast dinners, but let’s face it they can be a real faff to make. I myself have a love hate relationship with roast dinners:
- I love cooking them
- I hate the last 20 minutes when I’m juggling pans and trays
- I love eating it.
- I hate the cleaning up afterwards
This family feast came together a bit from this and just wanting to have something a bit different.
The chicken is roasted with the time-honoured friends thyme and garlic, with the vegetables and tinned tomatoes added around the bird halfway through, this helps to make the chicken both crisp and juicy. The potatoes just look after themselves in a tray. Then instead of gravy you’ve got a simple basil salsa verde.
Ingredients
- 1.5kg Chicken
- 10 cloves garlic
- 1 Aubergine
- 1 Courgette
- 1 tin of chopped tomatoes
- Potatoes (enough to fill a roasting tray or about 800g)
- 2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- Sea salt
- Rapeseed Oil
Plus you’ll need two roasting trays
This is a pretty straight forward recipe, which can be broken down into six steps. However when I’m cooking a meal when all the elements need to be ready at once I like to break it right down. This way I don’t have to think about it and can just enjoy making a meal for my family.
The meal needs 2 hours to make, I’ve out both the simple recipe and the full timed recipes below, use which every is more helpful
Simple Recipe
- In a pestle and mortar smash up 2 cloves of garlic, thyme and a pinch of sea salt. Then take the chicken, slash the thighs and smear the mix all over the bird. Push 4 further cloves of garlic in the cavity and put the chicken in the oven at 180c for 1.5 hours
- After 45 minutes cut up the potatoes and parboil for 5 mins, mix 2 tbsp oil and the rosemary in a baking tray and add the potatoes.
- Now chop up the vegetables. Then take the chicken out the oven, put the chicken on a plate and tip the vegetables and 2 cloves of garlic in the tray and mix in the juices. Make a hole for the chicken in the middle, put the chicken back in the tray and put the tray back in the oven.
- 15 minutes later (the chicken should have had about 1 hour 15 and the potatoes are starting to golden) take the chicken out, hunt out the garlic in the vegetable and de-skin. Then add the tinned tomatoes to the vegetables and mix through. Turn the potatoes as well.
- After a further 15 mins the chicken should be done. Remove the chicken from the oven, put on a plate and put the vegetables back in the oven. If the potatoes look like they need crispening turn up the heat to 220c. Cover the chicken in foil.
- Now make to make the salsa verde smash up 2 cloves of garlic with a pinch of salt, then add a bunch of basil leaves and smash to a paste. Add 2-3 tbsp olive oil – it needs to be looser than a pesto, almost like a sauce.
Now everything should be ready so serve up. The legs should simply pull off and I like to remove the breasts and slice instead of carving them on the bone.
Full recipe breakdown
I’m a simple man, when cooking a roast or a big meal I like to have a list of timings so I know where I am. This means I’m not constantly worrying about the next step or forgetting things that mess timings up. So this version of the recipe may seem long winded, but you won’t forget anything.
Timings start 2 hours before you eat
- -2:00. Put the oven on at 180c
- -2:00. In a pestle and mortar smash up 2 cloves of garlic, thyme and a pinch of sea salt. Then take the chicken, slash the thighs and smear the mix all over the bird. Push 4 further cloves of garlic in the cavity.
- -1:45. Put the chicken in the oven.
- -1:20. Fill the kettle and boil water for potatoes
- -1:20. Cut the potatoes, skin on, into chunks, about 2cm square
- -1:15. Put the potatoes on in boiling water.
- -1:10. Drain potatoes, put back in pan, lid on and shake to roughen up
- -1:05. Put 2 tbsp rapeseed oil and the rosemary in a roasting tray. add the potatoes and toss in the oil.
- -1:05. Put the potatoes in the oven.
- -1:00. Now top and tail both the aubergine and courgette. Slice both lengthways into 1cm strips, cut in half and then cutting sideways create 1cm chips.
- -0:45. Take the chicken out the oven, put the chicken on a plate and tip the vegetables and 2 cloves of garlic in the tray and mix in the juices. Make a hole for the chicken in the middle, put the chicken back in the tray and put the tray back in the oven.
- -0:30 Take the chicken out, hunt out the garlic in the vegetable and de-skin. Then add the tinned tomatoes to the vegetables and mix through. Turn the potatoes as well.
- -0:15. The chicken should be done. Remove the chicken from the oven, using a knife or skewer prick the thigh meat to the bone and check the juices run clear. Then put on a plate and put the vegetables back in the oven. If the potatoes look like they need crispening turn up the heat to 220c. Cover the chicken in foil.
- 0:10. Now make to make the salsa verde smash up 2 cloves of garlic with a pinch of salt, then add a bunch of basil leaves and smash to a paste. Add 2-3 tbsp olive oil – it needs to be looser than a pesto, almost like a sauce.
Now everything should be ready so serve up. The legs should simply pull off and I like to remove the breasts and slice instead of carving them on the bone.
- To remove the legs find where the joint is and push down with a sharp knife, do the same to separate the drumstick and thigh.
- To remove the breast whole cut along the breast bone and then using the tip of the knife cut under the breast.
I like to serve everything in bowls on the table so everyone can help themselves.. as long as I get the last potato!!