ROAST CHICKEN WITH GARLIC GRAVY

One Pot Cooking

A paleo classic and a meal the whole family can enjoy.  A succulent brined roasted chicken with mirepoix vegetables and 40 cloves of unpeeled garlic, served with savoy cabbage, brussel sprouts and roasted butternut squash faux potatoes.  The gravy is one of my families favourite and all the work is done for you in the oven, all you need to do is blitz the sauce with a hand blender and dinner is served.

Prep time 10 minutes / Oven roasting time 1 hr

Ingredients 

(serves 4)

1 lrg organic whole chicken

The Brine

3 ltrs water

2 ltrs Cold water or ice

1 1/2 cups Himalayan sea salt

10 black peppercorns

2 bay leaves

The Mirepoix and Gravy

40 cloves garlic skin on

1 carrot finely chopped

1 onion finely chopped

1 rib of celery finely chopped

50 ml olive oil

50g butter

1 ltr chicken stock

Himalayan sea salt 

Fresh ground black pepper

2 sprigs fresh thyme (1/2 tsp dried)

1 butternut squash peeled de seeded and largely diced

Brine

This is totally optional.  Heat the water to a gentle simmer, add the salt and stir until dissolved, take of the heat and leave to cool, add the cold water or same volume in ice and place in a deep container in the fridge, when completely cold add your chicken and leave to brine for a minimum of 12 hours up to 24 hours.  Remove from the brine and rinse before cooking.

Preheat the oven to 200C / 392F.  In a deep lidded casserole dish which the whole chicken fits in to add the olive oil and butter, heat medium, season the whole chicken with salt and pepper then sear the chicken all over until brown, remove the chicken and place to one side, add to the casserole dish the carrot, celery, onion and garlic and soften for around five minutes, place the chicken back in the dish along with any resting juices, add the stock and thyme.

Pop the lid on and cook the chicken for around 45 minutes to 1 hour until cooked through.  I cook to 64C / 147F but if you have young children I recommend cooking to 75C / 167F or until the juices run clear from the thickest part of the thighs.  Meanwhile boil the butternut squash for 8 minutes, remove from the pan reserving the water for later, season with salt and pepper, toss in olive oil and place on a roasting tray, roast for 40 minutes turning half way through.

Once cooked remove the chicken and leave to rest tented with foil to keep warm.  At this point steam or simmer your savoy cabbage and brussel sprouts for a couple of minutes in the butternut squash water.

Take all the garlic cloves and squeeze the soft garlic purée out of each clove in to the casserole dish, add any resting juices from the roast chicken and blitz with a hand blender for ease of use or a food processor, just be aware hot liquids in food processors like to burst out of the top under pressure!  Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper to your taste.

That’s your gravy done, roast chicken ready to carve, butternut roast potatoes and vegetables ready to serve, enjoy.