Herby Roast Chicken With Garlic Lemon Toasts Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Remove the chicken giblets. Rinse the chicken inside and out. Remove any excess fat and leftover pinfeathers and pat the outside dry. Place the chicken in a large roasting pan. Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the chicken. Stuff the cavity with the thyme, reserving enough thyme to garnish the chicken dish, 1 lemon, halved, and 2 halves of the garlic. Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and sprinkle again with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken. Cut 2 of the lemons in quarters and scatter the quarters and remaining garlic around the chicken. Lay the bacon slices over the chicken to cover.
• Roast the chicken for 1 hour. Remove the bacon slices from the top of the chicken and set aside. Continue roasting the chicken for an additional 1/2 hour, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh. Remove to a platter and cover with aluminum foil while you prepare the gravy.
• Remove all but 2 tablespoons of the fat from the bottom of the pan. Add the wine and chicken stock and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer for 5 minutes, or until reduced by half.
• Slice the chicken on a platter. Garnish the chicken platter with the bacon slices, roasted garlic, reserved thyme and 1 lemon, sliced. Serve with the gravy.

Steps:

• First, spatchcock the chicken (see our step-by-step video here). Sit the chicken on a board, breast-side down with the wing-end away from you. Use a strong pair of kitchen scissors to cut along either side of the backbone to remove it, cutting through the ribs as you go. Open out the chicken like a book, flip so it is now breast- side up, then press down on the breasts with the heel of your hand to flatten slightly - you are trying to get an even thickness across the whole joint. If you have any long skewers, diagonally criss-cross two, skewering through the legs and breast to hold in position. Sit the chicken in a dish or roasting tin. Mix the lemon zest and juice, olive oil and thyme with some pepper, rub all over the chicken, then cover and chill for up to a day.
• Get the beans ready by gently frying the pancetta in a pan - you shouldn't need any extra oil if you start it slowly. When the pancetta is golden and crisp, lift it out with a slotted spoon, then add the celery and garlic to the remaining fat in the pan. Gently cook for 10-12 mins until soft. Scrape into a medium-size deep roasting tin or baking dish with the pancetta, butter beans, thyme, wine, stock and plenty of seasoning. Set aside until ready to cook.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Transfer the chicken to a rack, breastside up, that will rest above the beans (sit the beans on a large baking sheet if the chicken overhangs at all, to keep your oven clean). Season the chicken with salt and roast for 40-50 mins until the chicken is cooked through - cut into one of the legs to check. Lift the chicken out to rest for 10 mins. If the beans are a bit soupy, transfer to the hob and simmer for a minute to reduce some of the juices - they should still be nice and wet though.
• To serve, cut the legs, thighs and wings from the chicken, then thickly carve or tear off the breast in chunks. Check the beans for seasoning, then stir through the parsley and serve with the chicken.

Steps:

• Roughly bash the garlic cloves and herbs (a rolling pin or meat mallet is good for this), then put in a large food bag or dish with the lemon zest, oil and chicken. Rub everything into the chicken, inside and out. Leave to marinate overnight.
• Heat oven to 140C/120C fan/gas 1. Remove the chicken from the fridge 30 mins before you want to cook it. Put the vegetables in a large roasting tin and top with the chicken. Scatter the herbs and garlic from the marinade over, around and inside the bird. Push the 2 lemons inside the chicken too, halving to fit if necessary. Rub the butter all over the skin and season generously.
• Pour the wine into the tin with 150ml water, cover tightly with a tent of foil (so it doesn't touch the top of the bird) and cook for 2 hrs. Remove the foil and continue cooking for 1 hr more, or until the chicken is cooked and the juices run clear. Increase oven to 220C/200C fan/ gas 7 and roast for 25-30 mins more until the skin is really crisp. Lift the chicken from the tin to rest on a plate for 30 mins, covered again with the foil.
• Meanwhile, put the roasting tin on the hob and bubble to reduce the cooking juices a little. Add any juices from the rested chicken and season to taste. Serve the bird in the middle of the table to share, alongside the buttery veg.