Honey and Orange Roast Chicken

There is of course an inherent danger when roasting chicken that the flesh - particularly the breast - will be extremely dry following cooking. This is generally tackled by using some form of animal fat, such as butter, rubbed under the skin prior to cooking. This, however, is saturated fat and adds considerable cholesterol to the finished product. It is something we are very much looking to avoid here. I hope you like what I have therefore come up with by way of an alternative.

The ingredients we require for this dish are as follows:

1 medium sized, free range, fresh chicken

Half a large orange (unpeeled) and cut into eight chunks

4 garlic cloves (unpeeled) and roughly chopped

1 tablespoon of honey (orange blossom honey is ideal but not essential)

Large pinch of dried thyme

Small pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

Mix the orange, garlic, honey, thyme and nutmeg together in a bowl. Wash the chicken thoroughly and use the mixture to stuff it. Place the chicken in a large baking tin and cover with aluminium foil. Put in an oven pre-heated to Gas Mark 5/190 degrees celsius. Cook for 20 minutes per pound plus twenty minutes extra, basting every so often. The foil should be removed for approximately the last half hour of cooking.

Note the beautiful caramelisation of the honey showing on the crisped up skin!

When the chicken first comes out of the oven, it is imperative that we rest it for at least half an hour prior to carving or - particularly! - serving. This allows the fibres which have contracted during cooking to relax and the juices to once again start flowing, similar to steak, if to a lesser extent. During this time, we can boil some new potatoes, drain them well and add a knob of butter and a pinch of dill leaves. The chicken can then be carved and our meal served.

Note that the potatoes and the chicken can be allowed to go completely cold on a hot summer's evening and the meal effectively served as a salad.