Herbed roast chicken with mustard basil mash

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220º/Gas 7. Using a fork mash together the boiled garlic, chopped sage and half a tablespoon of olive oil. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.

2. Take the chicken and run your hand between the skin and the flesh, creating a pocket. Push the sage mixture under the skin spreading over the flesh. Use cocktail sticks to fasten the skin and flesh together.

3. Rub the chicken all over with 1 tbsp olive oil. Season with celery salt. Place on a roasting tray. Roast for 30 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 170º and cook for a further 50 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Test by piercing the chicken through the middle of the chicken. If the juices run clear it is cooked through. If the juices are pink then cook the chicken for a further 15 minutes and test again.

4. Half an hour before the chicken is ready cook the accompanying vegetables. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large frying pan until very hot. Add the fennel wedges and cook until browned on all sides. Mix in the ground fennel, reduce the heat and add the white wine. Stir in well. Add 200ml water and leave to simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, cook the potatoes in a large saucepan of boiling salted water. Drain. Return to the pan with 3 tablespoons of olive oil and 1 tablespoons of grain mustard. Roughly mash the mixture together. Add the basil and milk. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Gently heat the mash over a low heat, stirring occasionally, until the mash is well-mixed with a light, fluffy appearance.

6. Once cooked remove the chicken from the oven and let it rest for 5 minutes in the roasting tray. Meanwhile, reduce the oven temperature to 120ºC/Gas 1. Transfer the basil mustard mash and seared fennel to serving dishes and keep warm in the oven.

7. Transfer the roast chicken to a chopping board. Make the gravy. Place the roasting tin with the pan juices on the stove-top. Add 100ml dry white wine and cook, stirring, until reduced by half. Meanwhile carve the chicken.

8. Serve the chicken with the gravy poured over it accompanied by seared fennel and basil mustard mash.

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Ingredients

a bunch of fresh sage, or a good pinch of dried sage, roughly chopped
4 garlic cloves, boiled for 2 minutes
5 1/2 tbsp Olive oil
salt and fresh ground black pepper
1 (1.4 kg) chicken
3 large bulbs of fennel, each sliced into 6 wedges
1 tsp Fennel seeds, freshly ground
150ml dry white wine
700g Potatoes, chopped
1 tbsp grain mustard
half a bunch of fresh basil, roughly chopped
100ml Milk
1 tsp celery salt

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