Belinda’s Celebratory Roast

A succulent, delicious roast chicken is for more than just the Sunday Roast - it’s the perfect choice for when you’re celebrating and bringing family and friends together. Read below my go-to method of roasting when I want to make our meal that extra bit more special. I like to serve my celebratory roast with roast potatoes, seasonal vegetables and creamed leeks. The recipes for these sides can be found here. And of course, for a real celebration a nice bottle of wine or even bubbly won’t go a miss!

Ingredients

• 1 Large Sutton Hoo Chicken

• 1 Lemon

• 1 Bulb of garlic (or around 6 or 7 cloves)

• 4 Sprigs of Rosemary

• 4 Sprigs of Thyme

• 1 Onion

• 30-40g Butter (enough to cover to ensure a crispy skin)

• 50-75ml red or white wine

• 100ml Chicken Stock (see here for our recipe)

• Salt and Pepper to season

• Plain Flour or Cornflour (10-20g to thicken for gravy)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C, 350° F, or gas mark 4.

2. Pat the chicken dry with kitchen towel and remove the giblets. (Save these to make stock)

3. Cut the lemon and onion into quarters. Place two pieces of lemon and two of onion inside the cavity of the bird along with the sprigs of rosemary and thyme, and place the remining onion and lemon in the tray surrounding the chicken.

4. Scatter your garlic cloves (unpeeled) into the tray around the chicken.

5. Rub the butter into the skin of the chicken and season well with salt and pepper.

6. Pour into the tray the chicken stock and wine of choice (white wine traditionally goes well with chicken, however red wine will leave you with a richer, warmer gravy).

7. Roast the chicken for 35 mins per kilogram (16 mins per pound). Chicken is cooked when the juices run clear after skewering into deepest part of the bird or when it reaches an internal temperature of 74 °C

8. Once cooked, place the chicken onto a board that will catch the juices. Cover lightly with foil and let it rest for 30 minutes.

9. Using a wooden spoon, press on the garlic cloves to release what should now be a garlicy paste, and stir into the juices. If you’ve boiled vegetables or potatoes, add about 250ml of this water to the juices in the tray, and a splash more wine if needed. Sprinkle in flour, small amounts at a time.

10. Bring to a simmer, and stir continuously to combine and thicken until you’re left with a deliciously rich gravy. Add more flour or cornflour if necessary to thicken. Strain to remove any remaining herbs and pieces of garlic/onion before serving.

    For our favourite side dishes for your celebratory roast, get the recipes here.

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For our guide on how to excellently carve your roast chicken, see here.

For more ideas on ways to mix up your roast chicken, see our other roast recipes here.