For US cup measures, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list. The vibrantly coloured and intensely flavoured vegetables that are cooked alongside here seem only to underline this, offering their own brightness and brio, sunny in taste as well as mood. Untruss the chicken, sit it in a roasting tin and put the lemon halves and 2 of the rosemary sprigs into the chicken’s cavity. Cut each leek into 3 logs, italian delight recipe slice lengthways and add to the tin.
Now, remove the core and seeds of the peppers and slice them into strips, following their natural curves and ridges, and add these to the tin. Tumble in the olives, and now pour the olive oil, mostly over the vegetables but a little over the chicken, too. The vegetables should be tender by now, too, and some of the leeks will be a scorched light-brown in parts. Cut the chicken up chunkily, transferring the pieces to a large warmed platter. Now take the pan back out of the oven and, with a slotted spoon or spatula, remove the vegetables to the large platter and when all is arranged to your aesthetic delight, pour over it all the bronze, highly flavoured juices that have collected in the pan. It is not advisable to make ahead. Leftovers should be covered and refrigerated within 2 hours of cooking.
Eat within 3 days, either cold or tossed through some cooked pasta. I wouldn’t say no to a piece of Chocolate Olive Oil Cake for dessert either! Now I wonder if I can add cut up or fingerling potatoes for a one-dish meal. Absolutely superb recipe and incredibly easy. If you have any leftovers from this, do yourself a favour and heat them up then stick them in a toasted ciabatta with a bit of provolone. The leftover are even better than the first time, so I think I should make 2 chickens next time or at least a bigger one. There are two of us and we pretty much finished a chicken between us.
We reduced the volume of vegetables since I didn’t have enough peppers and it was still delicious. This was my very first attempt at roasting a chicken. Followed Nigella’s directions exactly and it came out perfectly! Juiciest chicken ever, and the veg looked so elegant. Plan to make this again for a romantic dinner post-lockdown. Simply delicious – followed recipe and perfect. No missing the conversation, as no need to touch the dish for virtually the whole cooking time.