There is something very special about the smell of a roast chicken. The aromas permeate the house with the scent of homey comfort. I find this to be a very simple meal to create as the oven takes the grunt of the workload. Here, the chicken is nestled on a bed of fennel, onion and apple slices. These aromatics provide their beautiful flavour, then finish the chicken with a zap of heat for the golden skin. I love tarragon with chicken, but do be careful with it. Too much can lead to a grassy aroma, reminscent of
The cider provides moisture and flavour to this dish. The aim here is for a dry cider, rather than a sugar sweet one. Peckhams make some beautiful apple ciders, as does Zeffer. So please choose carefully.
As with all meat and poultry, use the best quality of free range chicken you can find. It will repay you ten fold in the final product. I use Turks chickens, which are free range, corn fed and available at most New World and Pak'n Save supermarkets. For more information, please visit theirwebsite.
Ingredients
- 150gm bacon lardons
- 1x brown onion, sliced
- 1x fennel bulb, sliced reserve the tops as garnish
- 300gm potatoes, cut into wedges
- 1.4kg whole chicken, free range
- 6 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1x lemon
- 300ml dry cider
- 1 tsp dried tarragon
- 2x apples, cored and cut into wedges
