Easy roast chicken and rice recipe

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Our easy roast chicken and rice is a succulent Sunday lunch that’s a bit different from a classic roast.

Easy roast chicken and rice
Serves6
Preparation Time20 mins
Cooking Time1 hours 45 mins
Total Time2 hours 5 mins
Nutrition Per PortionRDA
Calories712 Kcal36%
Fat26 g37%
Saturated Fat5 g25%
Carbohydrates70 g27%

Our easy roast chicken and rice is a brilliant alternative to a classic roast chicken, spatchcocked and served over risotto rice. 

Cooking the chicken over the rice means it absorbs all those beautiful roasting juices, for a flavour-packed dish. The herby oil is an extra step that adds so much flavour to this simple dish. Fresh herbs are an easy way to brighten up any recipe. We’ve used a combination of mint, coriander and parsley to partner with our chicken. Having a few herb plants at home means you can always have them on hand to throw into recipes, without having to re-buy each time. Spatchcocking a chicken increases surface area which means less cooking time and more flavour absorption. It’s easier than you might think and a great trick to have up your sleeve.

Ingredients

  • 1 onion, sliced
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 500g risotto rice, we used Carnaroli
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 800ml chicken stock
  • 200ml white wine
  • 1.5kg whole free-range chicken, spatchcocked

For the herb oil:

  • 150ml olive oil
  • bunch parsley
  • ½ bunch mint
  • ½ bunch coriander
  • 1 lemon, zest and juice
  • 2 garlic cloves

WEIGHT CONVERTER

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Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4. Spatchcock the chicken (see tips), season and rub all over with some cooking oil, and set aside .
  2. In a large, oven-proof casserole pan fry the onion in the olive oil over a medium heat for 10mins, until beginning to soften. 
  3. Add the rice and continue to stir for 2mins. Add the bay leaves, chicken stock, white wine and season.
  4. Put the chicken on top of the rice and move to the oven. Cook for around 1hr 30mins, until the chicken is cooked-through and golden brown.
  5. While the chicken is cooking make the herb oil by blitzing everything in a food processor together until well combined. 
  6. Serve the chicken with the rice and herb oil.

Top tip for making this easy roast chicken and rice

If you do not want to spatchcock your own chicken, you can buy bone-in joints instead and simply place these over the rice in step 4 instead.

How do I spatchcock a chicken?

Check out our spatchcock chicken recipe for a full guide. For spatchcocking for the barbecue, see sticky BBQ chicken.

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