Sage Roasted Chicken with Crispy Baked Potatoes

Cook Time 1.5 hours

Servings 4

Ingredients

1 x 1.8kg whole chicken
1 bunch sage
2 cloves garlic, chopped
60g butter at room temperature
¼ teaspoon salt and ground white pepper
1 lemon

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C

Butterfly the chicken (see cook’s note below)

Chop ½ the sage and mix with the garlic, butter, salt and pepper.

Using your fingers, separate the skin from the breast.  Spread the butter under the skin.

Cut the lemon in half, and place in a baking dish along with the remaining sage (stems included.)

Place the butterflied chicken, skin side up, on top of the lemons and roast for 40 minutes or until the skin is golden and the juices run clear when pierced in the thick part of the thigh.

Carve and serve with spring greens and new potatoes.

Cooks Notes:

– Butterflying the chicken will reduce the cooking time.  This recipe can be adapted to use 2 smaller chickens, just reduce the cooking time again.

– Placing butter under the skin of the breast not only provides beautiful flavor and crispy brown skin, it also protects the breast meat from drying out during cooking.

– When roasting your potatoes, first boil them in salted water until the edges rough up. Pour ¼ cup of oil in a baking tray and place in the oven for 30 minutes, then roast your potatoes in the tray