'Roast' chicken dinner
Try Donal Skehan's healthy chicken thighs recipe with all the flavours of a full Sunday roast but with far less washing-up. A low-calorie winner, even with all those delicious roast potatoes
Rotisserie chicken
- Preparation and cooking time
- Prep:
- Cook:
- PREP 30 MINS (WITHOUT STOCK), 1 HR (WITH STOCK) PLUS OVERNIGHT BRINING AND DRYING | COOK 2 HRS (WITHOUT STOCK), 9 HRS (WITH STOCK)
- A little effort
- Serves 2
Skip to ingredients
- 1.1kg Vendée chicken or 1.4kg Landes chicken
- 200g fine salt
- 2 tbsp chicken fat
BÉBÉ RUB
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
BROWN CHICKEN STOCK
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onionfinely diced
- 1 carrotfinely diced
- 1kg chicken wings and carcass bones
- 1 bouquet garni
- 2 or 3 black peppercorns
CHICKEN JUS GRAS
- 100g carrotschopped
- 100g celeriacchopped
- 1 onionquartered
- 1 shallotsliced
- ½ tbsp chicken fat (from the stock)
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 thyme sprig
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ tsp white peppercorns
- 50ml white wine
Nutrition: per serving
- kcal761
- fat52.2g
- saturates17.4g
- carbs11.3g
- sugars4.2g
- fibre2g
- protein56.6g
- salt3g
Method
step 1
Remove the chicken’s wishbone, any excess neck skin, the parson’s nose and winglets (use these in the stock), then tie the bird’s legs.
step 2
Put the bird in a brine made with the fine salt and 2.5 litres of water. Transfer to the fridge and chill overnight.
step 3
To make the stock, heat the oil in a large pan and lightly brown the veg. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and roast the chicken wings and bones for 45 mins, or until golden brown. Strain the fat (keep it for roasting), then add the chicken to the veg. Add the bouquet garni and peppercorns, and cover with 3 litres water. Simmer for 3 hrs, skimming often. You should get about 2 litres of stock. Strain out the veg and chill. Skim off any fat and add it to what you already have. (If you don’t want to make your own, use 2 litres good-quality prepared chicken stock.)
step 4
To make the jus gras, heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and roast the carrots, celeriac and onion in the oven until golden. Caramelise the shallots in a pan with the chicken fat, and add the herbs and peppercorns. Deglaze the pan with the wine, add the stock and bring to the boil. Add the roasted veg and simmer for about 2 hrs 30 mins. Strain the stock and reduce until the right consistency for a jus, then season.
step 5
Rinse the chicken under cold water and pat dry. Chill, open in the fridge, breast-side down, for at least 4 hrs.
step 6
To cook, mix all the ingredients for the Bébé rub together and tip 1 tsp into the cavity. Mix the chicken fat with another ½ tsp of the rub. Massage this into the bird, covering the skin, particularly the breast. Fix the chicken onto a rotisserie skewer. Put it breast-side up in the rotisserie oven and cook for 55 mins-1 hr at 200C/180C fan/gas 4. Check if it’s cooked through (cook for longer if necessary), then rest for 10 mins at 55C. Or, roast in a tin for 1 hr-1 hr 30 mins, turning the bird over a couple of times during cooking.
step 7
Reheat the jus and blend in the 2 tbsp of the chicken fat with a hand blender. Serve with the roast chicken and any side dishes.
