Friday Night Roast Chicken

 

 

I live in cosmopolitan London where there is a plethora of restaurants serving up every conceivable cuisine you can think of. In the past week we have dined at Cinder (cooked over fire, kissed by flames), Empire, Empire (disco-themed Indian restaurant) and Manzi’s (familiar dishes with a side of playful escapism). The words in brackets are the imaginative ways in which they have each described themselves.

I also had a generous plate of salads and a side of ladopita (a flatbread) at Ottolenghi in Hampstead (laid back and leafy). The reason for heading there was also to look for some sauces from their newly launched Pantry collection. In the event they were not available, so I placed an online order.

The sauces arrived this morning, as did a whole chicken and a shoulder of pork from the Ginger Pig. The pork is designated for a pulled pork dinner on Sunday, but what should I do with the chicken? There was some preserved lemons to use up and fortuitously Ottolenghi has a recipe for Spring roast chicken with preserved lemon. If you have the SIMPLE cookbook, this is on page 227.

The thyme I bought three weeks ago has still not been planted out as it has been either too wet or too windy to do anything outdoors. With a bit of garlic, some fresh lemon and a slab of butter, the only other ingredients for the chicken, this was the start of a splendid Friday night dinner.

 

 

 

Friday Night Roast Chicken Dinner

 

Spring roast chicken with preserved lemon

Harissa and confit garlic roast potatoes

Carrots roasted with olive oil and maple syrup

Steamed savoy cabbage with peas