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Prep time
1 hour
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Cook time
1 hour 45 minutes
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Serves
4
Author Notes
For this cosy and simple roast chicken recipe, I've coated a whole chicken in a sumac and butter rub which imparts a tart and lemony brightness into the chicken. Next, I add potatoes to the roasting pan halfway through. You can take the whole dish straight to the dining table and carve there, which makes for a no-fuss help yourself kind of dinner. Serve the chicken and potatoes with a lemony yoghurt dressing to cut through the sumac and as a nod to middle eastern cooking where yoghurt is so often present. Enjoy! —Vanessa Gordon
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Ingredients
- for the chicken and potatoes
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1.5kg
whole chicken
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30 grams
unsalted butter, at room temperature
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2 tablespoons
sumac
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2
lemons
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1 bunch
fresh thyme
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1
brown onion
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1kg
baby red potatoes
- for the yoghurt dressing
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1 cup
natural yoghurt
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4
cloves roasted garlic
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1
squeeze of lemon juice
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1 pinch
salt and pepper
Directions
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Preheat oven to 200 C / 180 C fan-forced.
Take the chicken out of the refrigerator and leave to come to room temperature for one hour. Pat chicken dry with a paper towel. Stuff the cavity with a whole lemon and a handful of thyme sprigs. Tie the chicken drumsticks together with oven-proof kitchen string to keep the lemon in place.
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Combine butter and sumac in a small mixing bowl to form a paste, using a pastry brush, brush all over the chicken. Reserve some of the butter for later.
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In a large roasting pan place discs of onion to create a bed for the chicken to lay on. Turn oven temperature down to 180C / 160 C fan-forced and roast for 25 minutes, breast side down.
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After 25 minutes, take the chicken out, flip it over so it is breast side up, brush remaining sumac butter over the top. Return to the oven.
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After another 25 minutes, baste the chicken in the pan juices and add potatoes, 1 lemon halved and garlic bulb to the pan. Cook for a further 30 - 40 minutes until the chicken and potatoes are cooked (time will vary depending on the weight of the chicken). Rest the chicken for 10-15 minutes wrapped in foil before slicing.
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Make the yoghurt dressing by combining natural yoghurt, roasted garlic squeezed out from its skins, a squeeze of juice from the roasted lemon, salt and pepper, and a sprinkle of sumac.
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Serve chicken, potatoes and yoghurt dressing with a warm couscous or rice salad.
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