perfect roast chicken
main courses | serves 4 - 6
Having learnt the things Ive learnt about chickens over the last few years, of course Im going to suggest that you buy free-range or organic. But if youre a little tight for cash, the RSPCA Freedom Food chickens are very good and available in all good supermarkets.
To prepare your chicken
Take your chicken out of the fridge 30 minutes before it goes into the oven
Preheat your oven to 240°C/475°F/gas 9
Theres no need to peel the vegetables just give them a wash and roughly chop them
Break the garlic bulb into cloves, leaving them unpeeled
Pile all the veg and garlic into the middle of a large roasting tray and drizzle with olive oil
Drizzle the chicken with olive oil and season well with salt and pepper, rubbing it all over the bird
Carefully prick the lemon all over, using the tip of a sharp knife (if you have a microwave, you could pop the lemon in these for 40 seconds at this point as this will really bring out the flavour)
Put the lemon inside the chickens cavity, with the bunch of herbs
To cook your chicken
Place the chicken on top of the vegetables in the roasting tray and put it into the preheated oven
Turn the heat down immediately to 200°C/400°F/gas 6 and cook the chicken for 1 hour and 20 minutes
If youre doing roast potatoes and veggies, this is the time to crack on with them get them into the oven for the last 45 minutes of cooking
Baste the chicken halfway through cooking and if the veg look dry, add a splash of water to the tray to stop them burning
When cooked, take the tray out of the oven and transfer the chicken to a board to rest for 15 minutes or so
Cover it with a layer of tinfoil and a tea towel and put aside. Now is the time to make your gravy
To carve your chicken
Remove any string from the chicken and take off the wings (break them up and add to your gravy for mega flavour)
Carefully cut down between the leg and the breast
Cut through the joint and pull the leg off
Repeat on the other side, then cut each leg between the thigh and the drumstick so you end up with four portions of dark meat
Place these on a serving platter
You should now have a clear space to carve the rest of your chicken
Angle the knife along the breastbone and carve one side off, then the other
When you get down to the fussy bits, just use your fingers to pull all the meat off, and turn the chicken over to get all the tasty, juicy bits from underneath
You should be left with a stripped carcass, and a platter full of lovely meat that you can serve with your piping hot gravy and gorgeous roast veg

from
Jamie's Ministry of Food
This is a really basic thing to cook... why you tried it with pork ribs im not sure.. lemony pork ribs sounds rank!
"Was really looking forward to trying this recipe. Because I am not a great fan of chicken I decided to use turkey instead. Also I am allergic to olive oil so I used lard which my mum recommended and lemon gives me heart burn so I used a melon.
I was a little disappointed with the results if I am totally honest...."
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Ha! Funniest post ever. You've got some gall complaining about the results of Jamie's Chicken Roast recipe after what you did to it?!
Dude c'mon! you took a turkey, rubbed it in lard and stuck a melon up it. No wonder it tasted like a dog's dinner.
Surely you jest?
just popped my chicken in the oven and it looks great. never really been comfortable cooking a whole chicken but this recipe was brillant and it smells great already!!
Thanks Jamie!
I was a liitle disapointed with the results if I am totally honest.
I tried Rick Stein's recipe (from Saturday Kitchen in Mid may 09) - and this beats it by a mile.
The only deviation I did to this recipe was to heat the oil and the herbs, garlic, pepper and salt first and bast the chicken with it all over then roast it.
The lemon makes a huge difference! Brilliant!
A fan from the Faroe Islands
thanks, from thailand!
Today as its mothers day i am making my mum this recipe
i hope it goes ok! this is my first time making tis and by the
other comments it sounds delish!
Josie
xx
I do not like chicken at all. But my husband does :]
So I had to do this chicken tonight, and I have made it. Based on Jamie's recipe the result was almost fabulous ;)
Great recipe. I normally use lemon juice with breast chicken (in my kitchen it is used instead of salt in my kitchen), but it was brand new for me to put a whole lemon inside chicken. It caused a total new taste for the meal I didn't like.
Thank You Oliver!
Merry Christmas to you and your family! I'm from Malaysian Borneo, state of Sabah.
I've seen your Christmas program and I thought it was brill! I love your recipes, your programs and your vibrancy in showing how its done.
Cheers and have a grand new year!
kiekkkeo akekkksman, fanx ha tu! meme bebika! toko? nonololtoya? lolkiuyi akajjand. hoonopaliykatyiu? amar goo kaithyi nee? ami bala nie? amar maa goo kie!
oi ami hasa koyar!
tant eyk yoi!
My family cried tears of joy because of this reciept.
Thank you from Portugal.
I'm a very big fan from Malaysia of your programme 'Jamie's Kithen'. Me and my husband do admire your passion about cooking, you are our IDOL!!!
Thanks for the lovely recipe, i m gonna try to make this and give my husband a big surprise for this coming X'mas! (",)
Do you have any good desert recipes maybe a sweet recipe for some KO hash cookies?
I wanna get baked!
Cheers geezer...!
So back in the oven for 20/30 mins. The carved side of the breast dried out a little on top because of this, but it came out looking safely cooked. (Perhaps a large lemon caused the undercooking - or maybe it was my Italian oven, which is hotter at the bottom, so perhaps the bird was up too high).
I've never made gravy using a vegetable trivet before, and the result was delicious!
The meat was moist and tender (apart from the carved piece) and the kids, who aren't normally that keen, scoffed it all up. Roasties worked well too.
http://www.jamiesministryoffood.com/content/c4/recipes/parmesan-chicken-breasts-with-crispy-posh-ham
Copy and paste into the address bar. Hope this is useful.
On Sunday i made one of Jamies recipes out of the Jamie at home book, it was crispy and sticky chicken with tomatoes and crushed potatoes, i would recommend it to anyone as is was absolutely gorgeous. Got to make it for my family now.
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/meat-recipes/consistently-good-gravy
I can't wait to cook this on Sunday! :)
http://www.jamiesministryoffood.com/content/c4/recipes/sizzling-beef-with-spring-onions-and-black-bean-sauce
have fun Cooking
Camping stove at the ready!.
Also, I would be interested in rolling out your idea to our local infants school, for parents to attend and learn - what are our chances?
Thanks
amanda w
Cover it with a layer of tinfoil and a tea towel and put aside. Now is the time to make your gravy
Is there a specific gravy that is to be made or is it the stuff which is left by the veges and olive oil?
really man u r really a cheif..I have seen couple of episodes on Dubai TV for your recipes on barbecu meat leg , chicken and fish..
your moves are reallt awsome...I will recommmend my self with you recipes if i do barbeceu in the sea or in the desert....
Mohammed Dalloul
Qatar Doha
P O Box 55475
+9745277702
mandy xxx
Must try (:
So, I've just cooked that ckicken and it was brilliant! I loved it! It tastes very fresh and when you cut off the chicken you will smell every single herb. On top of that you really taste the citron in the meat of the chicken! Wonderful!!!!!!! Just recommand that! (PS: It also works with dryed herbs, but is not as intensive as with fresh ones)