This particular recipe is one of Nigella's - I have changed it only slightly, and added a couple of medium chillis to give a background heat.
When I first made it I thought the veg looked a bit burnt when it came out of the oven - but it is just right, and the gravy the dish creates is out of this world.
1 chicken - approx. 1.5kg - the best quality you can buy
1 unwaxed lemon
I small bunch of fresh rosemary
3 leeks (washed and trimmed)
2 red peppers
1 orange pepper
1 yellow pepper
2 large chillis
100g pitted dry-packed olives
60ml olive oil
sea salt and pepper to taste
1 Preheat the oven to 200c
2 Cut each leek into 3 'logs', and then slice lengthways. Place in a roasting tin large enough to hold the veg and the bird.
3 Remove the core and seeds of the peppers, and slice into strips, adding theses to the roasting tin. Deseed the chillis
put in the olives. Pour over most of the olive oil and mix the veg gently, ensuring everything is coated.
4 Untruss the chicken , and sit on top of the veg. Pour the remaining olive oil over the chicken and rub in.
5 Place the two halves of lemon into the cavity, with a few sprigs of rosemary.
6 Add the remaining sprigs of rosemary to the veg, and season the chicken and the veg with salt and pepper.
7 Place uncovered in the oven for 1hour to 1 1/4 hours, by which time the chicken should be cooked through. Test by putting a knife into the thickest part of the thigh - the juices should run clear.
8 Place the chicken on a carving board, and return the roasting pan to the oven - switching the oven off at the same time.
9 Allow the chicken to rest for approx. ten minutes and then carve onto a serving plate.
10 Remove the roasting tin from the oven and remove the veg with a slotted spoon onto a serving dish, and pour over the gravy. I put some additional gravy into a small dish so more could be added at the table.
11 Now you are ready to serve - I followed Nigella's example and made a 'risotto' from pearl barley flavoured with saffron (recipe to follow).
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