RECIPES
TEXT
AMANDA GICHARU-KEMOLI
Spoil your mother rotten with a whole roast chicken and all the trimmings! This Italian-inspired chicken dish
couldn’t be easier, but the result is really special. Cooking both the potatoes and chicken with the same
whole lemon creates the most amazing flavour.
GARLIC ROAST CHICKEN
WITH ROSEMARY AND LEMON
POTATOES
Makes 6 servings
INGREDIENTS
2 kg whole chicken, cavity cleaned
1.5 kg white potatoes, peeled
1 large lemon + 1 small lemon for garnish
1 whole bulb garlic, broken into cloves
1 handful fresh thyme
1 handful fresh rosemary sprigs, leaves picked
8 rashers smoked streaky bacon, optional
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil
Rub the chicken inside and out with a generous amount of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Refrigerate
for 4 hours.
Preheat oven to 190ºC. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Cut the potatoes into golf-ball-sized
pieces, place into the water with the whole lemon and the garlic cloves, and cook for 12 minutes. Drain and
allow to steam dry for 1 minute, then remove the lemon and garlic.
While the lemon is still hot, carefully stab it about 10 times. Take the chicken out of the fridge, pat it with
kitchen paper and rub it all over with olive oil. Push the garlic cloves, the whole lemon and the thyme into
the cavity, then put the chicken into a roasting tray and cook in the preheated oven for around 45 minutes.
Remove the chicken to a plate. Add the potatoes and rosemary leaves to the roasting tray. Shake the tray
around, then make a gap in the centre of the potatoes and put the chicken back in. If using the bacon, lay
the rashers over the chicken breast and cook for a further 45 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked and the
potatoes are golden brown.
Remove the lemon and garlic from inside the chicken, squeeze all the garlic flesh out of the skin, crush it and
smear all over the chicken. Discard the lemon and rosemary. If using, remove bacon from the chicken and
crumble it over the potatoes. Garnish with freshly sliced lemon and carve chicken at the table.
33.