empire roast chicken

Made it last night and tasted superb. Just about to have leftovers. I had the same gravy issue as others so leave later next time or double up, i had to add boiling water. Also, did worry the chicken appeared dry but i couldn't fit the chicken and potatoes in the oven at the same time so i rested the chicken for about 45 mins with plenty of foil which did the trcik. There is a mistake on the lemon front, unusual for a Jamie recipe but you can figure out.

Made this wonderful empire chicken, there was 8 of us for dinner, so i doubled the ingredients. It was fantastic and there was still a little chicken left to eat cold for lunch today.

Just made this using chicken leg, thigh and breast pieces (lack confidence to cook the whole bird!) - it was delicious! I'm Indian and have grown up eating Gujarati food- potatoes are particularly authentic and taste like mums. Chicken marinade is similar to how my elders do it, except with quantities as a guide. <br /> <br /> Thanks!

Cooked this yesterday for some friends. Very time consuming recipe, but results well worth it. Really yummy.<br /> <br /> As others said, the gravy dried out, so should be put in later or more stock added initially. Also from a timing point of view, because you put the lemon from the potatoes inside the chicken, you can't put the chicken in the oven until you've boiled the potatoes. That screwed a little bit with my schedule because all of a sudden I was waiting 20 minutes for my potatoes to boil when my chicken was ready to go in already. <br /> <br /> I also wondered what to do with the two lemons for the marinade but the juice did seem like the most logical option! I guess you could also use the zest but I wasn't sure. <br /> <br /> 4/5 for taste. 3/5 for the recipe.

some of the recipes really need an editor...if you leave out one ingredient....say for instance...."half bottle of wine" or a "lemon".... it really screws the recipe.<br />

Yum plate licking good

Made it for the first (defo not last) time today, wife loved it, so easy to make. Lessons for next time, put gravy in later so it doesn't dry, get a bigger chicken to get whole lemon in, and so there's more to eat. Jamie remains my favorite cooking inspiration!!!! Thank you!

No one else seems to have a kitchen full of smoke? Chicken looks good, black crust etc with white meat, but that'll be the difference between 200c and 200c in a fan assisted oven, LOL.

I have made this a few times now and absolutely love it. Kelly the middle shelf is no problem the oven shelf takes only a few seconds to clean with a metal scourer and as long as your drip tray is big enough there are no splashes to worry about. I had bought chicken thighs and drumsticks on Friday and decided yesterday to try the marinade on them and I plan to cook on my grill tray with some water and a lemon in there rather than directly on the shelf as I don't intend to make the gravy. Simply planning to cook rice and naan and buy curry sauce from my favorite takeaway and have myself a mini tandoori meal. So looking forward to it. Simply can't recommend this recipe enough and everyone I have cooked it for has loved it. Leftovers? Baby Lambs leaf letuce, soft tortilla and feta - most amazing lunch for work on a Monday! Thanks Jamie.

We made this on return from our holidays, as we were longing for a roast chicken! I cannot tell you how amazing this was! The gravy was to die for and the chicken soo moist and tender! Burst of flavours! Exceptional recipe, which will be served in our house again and again!<br /> Stella*

Right, lemons!<br /> 3 lemons in total used in the recipe. First two are squeezed into the marinade, mixed with the other ingredients and rubbed all over the chicken. Third one is boiled whole with the spuds for ten mins. Take it out, pierce all over (careful of hot spurting lemon juice!) and shove it inside the chicken before putting it in the oven.

We cooked this today and it was AMAZING!! So delicious and tasty. One of my favorite Jamie recipes so far. I can't recommend this recipe enough, you MUST try it!!!

Watch the gravy, it burns, especially at 200 for an hour twenty. Quite annoying.

Receipe looked a bit too fiddley to me and I didnt fancy cleaning the oven and the shelf. I cooked the chicken in an oven bag and then when the chicken was cooked opened the bag and poured all the chicken juices into the gravy tray below. I also doubled the chicken paste that covered the chicken. I did l the rest of the receipe the same. Totally and absolutely delicious and even better cold the next day and no messy oven to clean.

Re the lemons, I was confused too. For those unsure what the issue is, the marinade ingredients list two lemons, and the method says simply to combine the marinade ingredients, mix well, then rub into the bird. I've not tried rubbing whole lemons into chickens but I don't think it would go well!<br /> <br /> On another forum I read that in the TV show Jamie actually uses THE JUICE OF TWO LEMONS in the marinade. That's probably what I would have done anyway, and probably what everyone else would have done too but it's not immediately obvious from the recipe so valid question. I've done this overnight and it seemed to get the right sort of consistency - I'll let you know how it cooks later.<br /> <br /> There is a third lemon which is put in the boiling water for the spuds, and subsequently into the bird's cavity for roasting. Three lemons in all.

The lemon is just the one you boil with the spuds, at least that's how I did it and it turned out wonderfully. Gonna try it today with a sri lanken roasted curry powder rather than the garam masala and see how that goes, wish me luck! the gravy was to die for!!

Anyone know what to do with the lemon in the Bombay potatoe recipe?

This is the best thing I have ever tasted. I cooked this New Years Eve but cooked with two chickens for my wife and four very close friends. The six of us ate the lot. Absolutely stunning and thank you.

I am really looking forward to making this, especially since reading all the comments about how delicious it is. I found a link to the video, but haven't watched it yet, so don't know if it addresses the question about what to do with the lemon in the marinade. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F89KELyTAyA

Just watched Jamie make this on Oz TV...not a big fan of Indian food but want to try it nonetheless. Looks full of flavour. Love how Jamie (often) says "this is the loveliest little thing I've ever put into my mouf"! Disappointed I couldn't find the comments by Chef Gavin who stirred everyone up...there's one in every crowd.<br />

My wife has now done a sterling job twice with this recipe. The lemons had us confused at first - we just cook potatoes with one and then stick it in the chicken. Works fine.<br /> Second time around we bought a larger chicken and think the additional fat caused the gravy to get a bit of an oily layer, not good.<br /> One tip - leftovers! Next day we took all the remaining chicken off and diced it, diced the remaining potatoes and fried them up in a touch of oil. We boiled up some rice and once that was done chucked it in on top of the frying chicken and potatoes and mixed it up. We also added a drop of water to moisten (not sure what else you could use, prob something tasty!) and cooked that for a further 5-7 minutes. Meanwhile we had spooned any residue of oil off the gravy and heated that up. We used that to spoon over the dish when served. It was GORGEOUS! :) Give it a try :)

Did you all cook this Chicken actually on the middle shelf, and then let the juices drip into the tray below? i'm a bit confused never done that before!<br /> any hints and tips would be greatly appreciated :)

This has been a tremendous success !!! Doing it for the second time now, as it went down so well......<br />

Made this as an alternative sunday lunch, with red onion, cucumber and coriander salad, nan bread absolutely everyone (including children) loved it. Would definitely make again... Fantastic

made this for my family yesterday, they loved it!!!It was fantastic ,well done jamie

Cooked this on Saturday Night after marianating for 24 hours fantastic Left out cloves we dont lke them took nothing awayfrom flavor will certainly cook again thank you Jamie

i love this recipe, this is the second time iam cooking it. this time in th<br /> e tatties near the end of cooking iam going to add spinach, sort o bombay potatos meet aloo sagg. my kitchen smells divine and my mouth is watering.... yum... i also have to cut down on the old chillis as my partner is a lightweight but i make a chili dip to go with it.<br /> <br />

I am cooking this for a dinner party on Sat eve. Any suggestions what veg / salad to serve with it.?<br /> Thanks

Gravy Dries out.

I've been waiting two weeks to give this a go. All I can say is the wait was worth it. My daughter has been raving about the smell in the fridge since last night. Will definitely trying more of Jamie's recipes!

Trying this recipe for the first time tonight. So far the smells are wonderful and waiting for it to cook. I to had problems in deciding what to do with the lemons in the marinade but decided to use the juice, but what is more confusing the 1 lemon in the recipe for the potatoes. What the hell do you do with it. I decided to return the lemon to the fridge

I tried this dish last Sunday. Absolutelly delicious. My Fave restuarant is the Martin & it was fab to see Jamie go there. The only down-side to my prep was I grated the garlic, ginger & chillies - only to realize I have got chillie seeds/sap into a couple of nicks in my hand!! Oh the agony. The Chicken & Potatoes made up for it though!!

I have just made this for Sunday lunch for my family. I have young children so only used one chili in the marinade and didn't out any on the potatoes, and added carrots to roast with potatoes too - yum but followed marinade recepie (lemon juice in the marinade). Marinaded the chicken overnight and every time I opened the fridge my mouth watered! It was delicious when cooked, I had no problems with the gravy, it was the best bit, didn't have to add any water (cooking at 180 as have a fan oven.....could this be the reason others have dried out?) and having chicken directly on shelves so all the juice drips into the gravy is a really good idea and will start adapting for traditional roast chicken. My children loved it and hubby very pleased which equals one very smug mum! Thanks Jamie.

I cooked this last night and used the juice of the two lemons for the marinade. It turned out OK so it would be interesting to hear what other have done. Also, as others have mentioned, you have to take care that the gravy does not dry out, I added additional stock during the cooking.<br /> <br /> Overall, it was a good, but I think it needed marinating for longer. I will leave overnight next time as suggested in the recipe and not the 7 hours as I did on this occasion.

I had the same problem understanding what to do with the lemons. I plus my lovely wife decided it was lemon juice. As I send this message we have nearly finished the recipe. I will let you know if we were right or wrong,

Please, please, what do you do with the two lemons in tha marinade ?? Is it just the juice or is it the rind finely grated too ???<br /> <br /> <br /> Michele

I want to cook this dish on sunday ,is it just me but what do you do with the 2 lemons in the marinade i cannot find them mentioned in the recipe

Cooked this tonight. It was de-licious and very easy! Only minor problem was the gravy, which dried out almost completely, so next time I would add more stock/water at the start, or halfway through cooking.

Just ate this dish and it was fantastic!!

Still have the taste of the chicken, gravy and Tatties in my mouth, fantastic!!

This chicken is in the oven now!! Smells incredible. I can't wait. What a recipe Mr Oliver. Cant' believe he was in Rice n Things in Bristol which is right next 2 my house and i missed him. Mayb Next time

Cooked this for dinner last night. It was awesome, It marinated for 24 hrs in all even the fridge smelt fantastic served the chicken whole to the table not a pick left on it by the end, spuds dissapeared and corriander nan polished off the left over gravy think i'll be cooking again real soon. TY Jamie<br /> <br />

Made this Sunday best thing I've ever had, beats any curry dish from a restaurant! only problem my gravy went horrible wrong followed instructions down to a tee, other than on TV Jamie said 2 tablespoons of flour on here it said 3.

Outstanding tastes..we loved it..sauce/gravy awesome we loved it..try it your love it to..Jamie your a genius ;-)

I have never posted a comment on any such website before - until now!<br /> <br /> This reicpe is genius.<br /> <br /> Ideal for a family of 4 who like chicken but most importantly crave indian style cuisine!<br /> <br /> So simple. All tasks can be done at your leisure and methodically allowing washing up to be done as you go so you wont be left with loads of washing up afterwards!Ok it takes longer than a bog-standard Sunday roast chicken but this is not meant to be an alternative sunday lunch. It is an 'Indian' style meal. We normally have a 'curry night' on a Friday and this recipe will now feature on our list of things to make on a 'curry night' from now on.<br /> <br /> The star of the show is the gravy / curry sauce. Amazing flavour. The Bombay potatoes are the best i have ever had and the chicken was so tender and tasy too.<br /> <br /> Didn't change anything from the orginal receipe.<br /> <br /> The next time I make this I will serve with some sort of side salad and perhaps poppadums and a chutney.<br /> <br /> An absolute delight, must try dish.

We all loved the chicken and potatoes as well. But I won't be adding 3 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce next time. I've not used this before and it overwhelmed everything else. I did add beer and even a bit of cream to it afterwards but just tasted of way too much Worcestershire sauce. Next time I'll just use a splash. I've written in my copy, hope that's ok!

Tried this tonight but found the marinade didnt go any deeper than the skin and it ended up just tasting like normal roast chicken ! I marinaded for about 4 hours. Ant tips to get the taste embedded into the meat ?

Just made this as Sunday roast at Uni.<br /> <br /> Tasted amazing! Cheers Jamie!

made this last night was delicious... try it yourself <br /> thanks jamie x

Saw this on being made on TV and had to give it a go. Absolutely fantastic. As a curry / roast chicken combo, Jamie's got it spot on. You've got to try it. My only deviation from the recipe was to add par-boiled cauliflower to the potatoes after 20 mins. Recommend really going to town on rubbing the marinade it into the chicken and leaving for at least 5 hours. The 'gravy' cooked in the bottom of the oven did start to dry out, so I sieved into a jug half way through, added more water and stock and put it back into the oven, then combined with the first batch at the end. Threw some nice blobs of yogurt on the potatoes too.

Saw it last night on the telly and I'm cooking it now for friends tonight. Very excited. I think "Chef" Gavin is a rather spurious title for someone with that attitude.

Wow! this is incredible and yet another great dish from Jamie. Anyone can make this and you certainly dont need to be a chef to do this. Gavin, drop the chef bit, and go and look in Asda's freezer cabinet, even you may manage re-heating something from all that slop.

Wow! I cannot recommend this enough: it has now become my favorite meal! Made this last night, and only only left the chicken to marinade for one hour, and even with that short a time, it was delicious. The smelll when cooking (or even just marinading) is divine, and as for the taste....words cannot describe! Already thinking of cooking this again in a day or two, and cannot waot to pass this recipe on and make this dish for friends. Thanks Jamie ! :)

Lovely made it tonight the whole house smells devine.and I reckon chef gavin needs to stop being a bore cuz it ain't just a roast der..its a roast with a big twist;)

Had this last night, AMAZING! It has now over taken Jools' favorite beef stew as my all time top dinner! Well done Jamie. xxx......and no, this is by no means just roast chicken.<br />

Cooked this for dinner this evening. It was delicious, thank you Mr Oliver! I only managed to marinate for half day but OMG even when marinating it smelt devine and I couldn't wait to cook the chicken. The chicken, potatoes and especially the gravy did not disappoint. This is one of the more tasteful dishes I have ever eaten. I can't wait to have friends over to cook this for them, in fact, I can't wait to cook this again. The family and myself loved, loved, loved it! Just one thing, not cooked with lemon in the middle of chicken before and didn't know when I pierced the lemon with a knife it would spit hot juice on me, be careful. But can forgive this cos its sooooooooo tasty.

Made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious. Only managed to marinate my chicken for half day but every time I opened the fridge the smells were fab and I couldn't wait to cook it. It definitely didn't disappoint. The gravy OMG, superb! This meal would ideal for group of friends. Just one thing, I've never boiled lemon to put in the chicken before so didn't know when I pierced it with a knife it would squirt hot lemon juice at me! Either way I loved this, as did the family and can't wait to do it again.

this looks so delicious and am going to make it on Sunday. Great show.. Thanks xx

I saw this last night and my jaw hit the floor. I'm half white British and half Bangladeshi. I've never met the Bangladeshi side of my family, but my mum (who is so white she wears factor 50 even in winter!) brought me up on curries. Christmas is a struggle, as mum and I love curry (and traditionally had vege curries on Christmas day growing up), and my husband's family are very traditional meat and two veg (spag bol is 'exotic' type folk!) Jamie's recipe blew me away - thank you so much Jamie! It's what theyll all be getting Christmas Day this year! And if they don't like it?.....great! More for me and the kids :o)

@Chef Gavin - so marinading a chicken and tossing potatos is too complicated for you yet you call yourself Chef Gavin? People like you who always chime in with something negative really wind me up. <br /> <br /> To me, that looked delicious yet pretty simple to get everything ready in one go, chicken, potatoes and gravy all ready in one. Will try this later.<br /> <br /> I'm loving the series, it's great to see Jamie back to some good ol' cooking.

OMG! this look sooo delics! every xmas or some Sunday i say to my husband lets spice up our roast!!! and he would never let me try. Thank you Jamie I lurv youuuu. My husband is now convinced it can work! XXXX

This has got my mouth watering...

saw this being made on TV. Got my shopping list written and planning to serve it on Friday night - looks delicious!

If you spatchcock the chicken like I think he did on tv, how long should it cook?

This sounds really nice. My OH finds normal roast chicken quite boring (he is weird) but this looks great. Will try it very soon.

Sounds good to me!!!!!! I'll try it. Xx