SIMPLE WHOLE ROASTED CHICKEN RECIPES

Steps:

• 1. Remove the chicken from the fridge 30 minutes before you want to cook it, to let it come up to room temperature.
  2. Preheat the oven to 240°C/475°F/gas 9.
  3. Wash and roughly chop the vegetables – there’s no need to peel them. Break the garlic bulb into cloves, leaving them unpeeled.
  4. Pile all the veg, garlic and herbs into the middle of a large roasting tray and drizzle with oil.
  5. Drizzle the chicken with oil and season well with sea salt and black pepper, then rub all over the bird. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables.
  6. 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 chicken’s cavity, with the bunch of herbs.
  7. Place the tray in the oven, then turn the heat down immediately to 200°C/400°F/gas 6 and cook for 1 hour 20 minutes.
  8. If you’re 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.
  9. Baste the chicken halfway through cooking and if the veg look dry, add a splash of water to the tray to stop them from burning.
  10. When the chicken is 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 tin foil and a tea towel and leave aside while you make your gravy.
  11. To carve your chicken, remove any string and take off the wings (break them up and add to your gravy, along with the veg trivet, for mega flavour). Carefully cut down between the leg and the breast. Cut through the joint and pull the leg off.
  12. 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.
  13. 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.
  14. 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 some delicious roast veg.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 220°C/fan 200°C/gas mark 7. Pull the leaves off the cauliflower and cut the core out of the bottom. Bring a large pan of water to the boil and add the cauliflower. Cook for 5 minutes, or until beginning to soften. Drain and leave to steam dry for a further 5 minutes.

  Whisk together 2 tbsp oil, the coriander, cumin, turmeric and cinnamon. Place the cauliflower in a large round oven dish, big enough to later take the lentils. Generously rub the cauliflower all over with the spice and oil mix and season to taste. Place in the preheated oven and roast uncovered for 20 minutes. 

  Meanwhile, add the remaining olive oil and the shallots to a medium frying pan over a medium heat and fry for 7-10 minutes, until the shallots begin to turn golden brown and caramelised. Add the garlic, sumac and apricots and cook for a further 2 minutes. Stir through the lentils and stock and season to taste. 

  Remove the cauliflower from the oven and spoon the lentils and shallots around. Return the cauliflower to the oven for a further 20-30 minutes or until tender. 

  Once the lentils are cooked, squeeze the lemon juice over the top. Scatter the cauliflower and lentils with the toasted almonds, pomegranate seeds, parsley and mint. Serve the cauliflower sliced into chunky wedges.