29 - Pot Roast Chicken

Ingredients

• 2tbsp vegetable oil
• 4 rashers streaky bacon, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 leeks, sliced into rounds
• 4 sprigs of thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 sticks of celery, roughly chopped
• 4 small organic carrots, scrubbed
• 2 parsnips, scrubbed and halved lengthways
• 1 celeriac, cut into chunks
• 2.4kg (4lb 13oz) chicken
• 400ml (13fl oz) of chicken stock

Method

1. Heat the oven to 160°C (gas mark 2-3). Heat the oil in a large, heatproof casserole dish over a medium heat. Add the bacon, garlic and leeks and cook over a medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 5-10 minutes, or until the leeks have softened.
2. Tuck in the thyme, bay leaves, celery and root vegetables. Add the chicken to the casserole (breast-side up) and season it with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add enough stock to a depth of 2cm. (¾in)
3. Cover it tightly with foil or a lid, then place the casserole in the oven and roast for 1¾hours, basting occasionally with the pan juices. Increase the heat to 180°C (gas mark 4) and remove the lid 20 minutes before the end of the cooking time, to allow the chicken to brown.
4. Remove the chicken and vegetables to a warm dish and check the sauce. Skim off any fat, adjust the seasoning and, if the sauce is too thin, reduce it over a high heat on the stove top. Transfer the sauce to a jug. Discard the thyme and bay leaves. Serve with vegetables.