Simple ingredients with minimal preparation can produce a fragrant chicken lunch or supper. The delicious juice produced during cooking can be eaten with the chicken – you could also use 2 tbsp to combine with 3 tbsp olive oil and 1tbsp white wine vinegar to dress some green leaves or vegetables to have with it. To complete the meal, add some good bread and butter or some Baked Sourdough Crumbs see https://sherbhert.com/reduce-food-waste-baked-sourdough-crumbs/ .
For 4
Rapeseed or olive oil
100mls water, white wine or dry vermouth
1 tbsp dried fennel seeds
1 whole organic free range chicken or 4 chicken legs
4 tsp English mustard
4 tsp brown sugar
Salt
Zest and juice of a large orange
The leaves from a small bunch of thyme
Preheat the oven to 200c.
Use a tbsp of oil to grease an oven proof dish large enough to hold the chicken.
Pour the water, wine or Vermouth into the dish and add the fennel seeds and then lay the chicken on top.
Smear the mustard over the chicken, scatter the sugar, orange zest and juice and the thyme leaves on top and then season with a little salt.
Bake in the preheated oven until the chicken is golden brown, tender and completely cooked through. * If using chicken legs, they should take around 45minutes to an hour – a whole chicken will need at least 35 minutes per kilo (15 minutes per pound) plus an extra twenty minutes.
*To check that the chicken is cooked, insert a sharp knife into the gap between the thickest part of the leg and the body; if the juice that runs our is clear it is cooked; if the juice is pink or bloody it needs more cooking time.
