Thyme-buttered Roast Chicken with Asparagus and Pancetta
Covering the breast with a herby butter keeps the meat beautifully succulent. You can reuse the roasting tin to cook the asparagus, which adds lots of flavour and saves on washing-up, too! Hands-on time 15 min. Cooking time about 1hr 50min, plus resting. Serves 8
◆ 2.3-2.5kg (5-5½lb/large) chicken
◆ 2 lemons
◆ 1tbsp thyme leaves, plus 3 thyme sprigs
◆ 1 bulb garlic (about 12 cloves), unpeeled and squashed
◆ 50g (2oz) butter, softened
◆ 200g (7oz) smoked cubed pancetta or bacon lardons
◆ 800g (1lb 12oz) asparagus, preferably new season British, woody stalks trimmed
1 Preheat oven to 220°C (200°C fan) mark 7. Pat the chicken dry with kitchen paper. Finely grate the zest from both lemons and set aside in a small bowl. Cut the lemons in half. Squeeze the juice inside the chicken and leave the juiced lemons inside the cavity. Add the 3 thyme sprigs and half of the garlic cloves.
2 Add the softened butter and thyme leaves to bowl with the lemon zest and mix well. Season with black pepper. Starting from the neck end, use your fingers to ease the skin away from the breast to loosen. Spread the herb butter underneath skin and all over the breast to cover evenly. Season chicken all over. Put the remaining garlic cloves into a roasting tin and sit the chicken on top.
3 Roast in the oven for 20min, then reduce temperature to 200°C (180°C fan) mark 6 and roast for a further 1hr 15min, or until the juices run clear when a skewer is inserted into the thickest part of the leg.
4 Remove the chicken to a board, loosely cover with foil and set aside to rest for at least 15min.
5 Meanwhile, pour off most of the fat from the roasting tin, leaving behind a couple of tablespoons, add the pancetta or lardons to the tin. Cook in the oven for 5min, then add the asparagus, toss together and season. Roast for a further 8-10min, or until the asparagus is tender and the pancetta crisp.
6 Serve the chicken alongside the asparagus and pancetta.
PER SERVING 478cals, 43g protein, 33g fat (10g saturates), 2g carbs (2g total sugars), 2g fibre
GET AHEAD Prepare the chicken with the herb butter up to a day ahead, cover and chill – don’t squeeze the lemons, do this just before cooking. Remove the chicken from the fridge at least 30min before roasting.